• LIFE

Muhammad Ali’s Life in Photos

2 minute read

Those who had the opportunity to watch Muhammad Ali in the boxing ring witnessed pure athletic dominance wrapped in a brash display of swaggering bravado. For those who never got the chance to see the heavyweight champion boxer, the pages of LIFE offered an intimate look—if not quite a close second to the real thing.

LIFE’s editors dispatched many of the magazine’s photographers—including John Shearer, George Silk, John Dominis and Bob Gomel—to capture the athlete at work and at play. Images of Ali in the ring depict a fierce competitor, his chiseled physique reflecting harsh stadium lights, his facial expression the very picture of focus. Though the rapt faces of spectators sometimes find their way into the frame, it’s clear that, to Ali, he and his opponent are the only ones in the room.

Photos of Ali outside the arena, meanwhile, offer windows into different aspects of his personality. Some, like Shearer’s 1971 photograph of the boxer taunting rival Joe Frazier, show the tactics he used to try to intimidate opponents into believing, as he did, that he was indeed “the greatest.” Other images, like Shearer’s shot of him outside his Champburger restaurant before taking on Frazier, show a more playful side, a desire to please his legions of fans.

The legacy of Muhammad Ali, of course, extends far beyond his feats of athleticism, to his role as a community leader to his work as a poet. As he wrote in LIFE’s pages in 1966:

I can take it on the chin
And that’s the honest truth my friend.
Now from Muhammad you just heard
The latest and the truest word.
So when they ask you what’s the latest
Just say ‘Ask Ali. He’s still the greatest.’

For much more on Muhammad Ali, see TIME’s ALI: The Greatest, a 112-page, fully illustrated commemorative edition. Available at retailers and at AMAZON.COM

Muhammad Ali in training in Miami Florida, 1971.
Muhammad Ali in training in Miami Florida, 1971. John Shearer—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Heavyweight bout in which Cassius Clay (R) (later Muhammad Ali) narrowly defeated Doug Jones.
Heavyweight bout in which Cassius Clay (R) (later Muhammad Ali) narrowly defeated Doug Jones. George Silk—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Heavyweight contender Cassius Clay (later Muhammad Ali) getting his poetic mouth taped by trainer Angelo Dundee during his weigh-in before big fight with Doug Jones.
Heavyweight contender Cassius Clay (later Muhammad Ali) getting his poetic mouth taped by trainer Angelo Dundee during his weigh-in before big fight with Doug Jones.George Silk—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Cassius Clay (later Muhammad Ali) after defeating Doug Jones in close heavyweight bout in Madison Square Garden. 1963
Cassius Clay (later Muhammad Ali) after defeating Doug Jones in close heavyweight bout in Madison Square Garden. 1963George Silk—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Muhammad Ali throwing the famous "phantom punch" during his 2nd fight vs. Sony Liston.
Muhammad Ali throwing the famous "phantom punch" during his second fight against Sonny Liston. George Silk—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali after his fight with Sonny Liston.
Heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali after his fight with Sonny Liston. John Dominis—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Ali and Frazier. Muhammad Ali, pre-fight weigh in.
Ali and Frazier. Muhammad Ali, pre-fight weigh in.John Shearer—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Boxer Muhammad Ali taunting Joe Frazier at Frazier's training headquarters, Philadelphia PA - 1971.
Boxer Muhammad Ali taunting Joe Frazier at Frazier's training headquarters, Philadelphia, 1971. John Shearer—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Boxer Muhammad Ali with fans in front of his "Champburger Restaurant" before bout with Joe Frazier.
Boxer Muhammad Ali with fans in front of his "Champburger Restaurant" before bout with Joe Frazier. John Shearer—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
Heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali, posing outside the Alvin theater where "The Great White Hope" is playing.
Heavyweight boxer Muhammad Ali, posing outside the Alvin theater where "The Great White Hope" is playing. Bob Gomel—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images

More Must-Reads from TIME

Write to Eliza Berman at eliza.berman@time.com