Ali: "I am the greatest, I said that even before I knew I was."

Ali: "It's just a job. Grass grows, birds fly, waves pound the sand. I beat people up."

Ali: "Only a man who knows what it is like to be defeated can reach down to the bottom of his soul and come up with the extra ounce of power it takes to win when the match is even."

Ali: "I'm not the greatest; I'm the double greatest. Not only do I knock 'em out, I pick the round."

Ali: "I done wrestled with an alligator, I done tussled with a whale; handcuffed lightning, thrown thunder in jail; only last week, I murdered a rock, injured a stone, hospitalised a brick; I'm so mean I make medicine sick."

Ali: "Service to others is the rent you pay for your room here on earth."

Ali: "Life is a gamble. You can get hurt, but people die in plane crashes, lose their arms and legs in car accidents; people die every day. Same with fighters: some die, some get hurt, some go on. You just don't let yourself believe it will happen to you."

Ali: "I know where I'm going and I know the truth, and I don't have to be what you want me to be. I'm free to be what I want."

Ali: "I never thought of losing, but now that it' s happened, the only thing is to do it right. That's my obligation to all the people who believe in me. We all have to take defeats in life."

Ali: "I hated every minute of training, but I said, 'Don't quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.'"

Ali: "The fight is won or lost far away from witnesses - behind the lines, in the gym, and out there on the road, long before I dance under those lights."

Ali: "He who is not courageous enough to take risks will accomplish nothing in life."

Ali: "The name Muhammad is the most common name in the world. In all the countries around the world - Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Morocco, Turkey, Syria, Lebanon - there are more Muhammads than anything else. When I joined the Nation of Islam and became a Muslim, they gave me the most famous name because I was the champ."

Ali: "It's not bragging if you can back it up."

Ali: "I am an ordinary man who worked hard to develop the talent I was given. I believed in myself, and I believe in the goodness of others."