There are more than 400 recognized sports in the world, but none are as true and demanding as boxing.
Forget WWE. Real fighters enter the ring not with steel chairs or wooden bats, but with gloves on their hands, sweat on their brow and iron blood through their veins.
As Ernest Hemingway once said, “My writing is nothing. My boxing is everything.”
Nothing is quite as romantic as the Golden Gloves champion, not even the triumphant matador.
No doubt the greatest of all time was none other than Muhammad Ali, who died June 3 at age 74. He was a man who truly deserved the nickname "Champ" like no other.
No other way around it - he was the best. Not even Joe Louis, Sugar Ray Robinson or Floyd Mayweather, Jr. were quite as raw yet pristine in their dances of death around the ring.
It’s really no wonder then Ali’s death is arguably the most heartfelt death of 2016 thus far, even more so than David Bowie or Prince. What Elvis Presley did for music, Ali did for sports.
On the subject of music, it might come as a surprise Ali arguably had one of the strongest influences on the rising hip-hop community.
But it’s also not really surprising at all. Hip-hop always had this beat and overwhelming energy to it that replicates a boxing match almost flawlessly.
Known as a motormouth trash-talker in his prime, Ali singlehandedly invented the classic diss track with some of his most memorable lines.
Of course, we all know his signature tagline “fly like a butterfly, sting like a bee,” but it is only one of perhaps hundreds of clever spoken-word insults thrown by the Champ.
Perhaps the best known example is of this was when he recited his poem “I Am the Greatest” to the world before his legendary sparring with Sonny Liston. Countless other similar poems were written by Ali to accommodate other boxers he fought.
“I predict Mr. Liston’s dismemberment,” Ali said in “I Am the Greatest.” “I’ll hit him so hard, he’ll wonder where October and November went.”
Damn. When was the last time you heard a rap with a verse that tough? Ice Cube, Rick Ross and Nicki Minaj need to step up their game.
It’s hard not to see the influence here. His rhythmic shit-talking and outlandish arrogance and sarcasm could easily be confused as some 1960s Kanye West.
Ali’s influence stems far enough for some hip-hop artists to cite the heavyweight boxer as a direct influence on their careers. LL Cool J said “Mama Said Knock You Out” wouldn’t exist without Ali.
He was actually mentioned in Sugarhill Gang’s “Rapper’s Delight,” the first major hip-hop hit. Other rappers like Public Enemy, the Fugees and Wu-Tang Clan have gone on to allude to Ali in their raps.
There is more to Ali’s influence on hip-hop than just well-placed disses, however. His views on civil rights, Islam and the Vietnam War made him a sports equivalent to Malcolm X. His refusal to participate in the war made him a figure of both acclaim and scrutiny to the American people.
Calling him the People’s Champ extended well beyond his ability to throw hard punches. He was a rebel in the black community and, all outcasts alike, could rally behind in the 1960s and 1970s.
While the tragedy of his death might create a sense of dread for those who loved him, you should always count yourself lucky for being able to live in the same lifetime as a warrior like him. He was Hercules, Beowulf and Odin all rolled up into one.
He should be remembered for more than just a boxer. He was a conqueror.
“I can drown a drink of water and kill a dead tree,” Ali said in another one of his poems. “Wait till you see Muhammad Ali.”
afaulds@indiana.edu | @a_faulds9615
