Known for his dazzling speed, poetic trash talk, and extreme self-confidence, Ali had 61 fights in his career. He captured the heavyweight championship three times and engaged in epic battles with Joe Frazier and George Foreman.
In an interview with The Guardian, Ali distinguished between his best technical performance, his best fan-pleasing fight, and his most personally meaningful victory.
"The fight when I was at my best as a boxer was against Cleveland Williams. The fight that was the best for fans was against Joe Frazier in Manila. But the fight that meant the most to me was beating George Foreman to win the championship of the world again."
Ali added, "So many people come up to me and tell me they remember where they were when I whupped George Foreman. I remember where I was too."
The 1966 fight against Cleveland Williams saw Ali defending his heavyweight belts. Williams, with a record of 69-5-1 (55 KOs), got his first shot at the championship and was considered one of the best fighters to never achieve the top honor.
Ali dominated the fight, sticking and moving, and stopped Williams in the third round. Many regard this as one of Ali's best performances.
After the Williams fight, Ali fought and won four more times before suffering his first loss to Joe Frazier in his 32nd contest.
Ali's career went beyond the ring. He became a global icon for social activism, using his platform to speak out on important issues of his time.