Have you ever wondered how Muhammad Ali coined the famous phrase, “float like a butterfly sting like a bee?” Here’s a hint: you can literally watch the late boxing champ float while stinging his opponent in a clip.
In a throwback YouTube video posted, 35-year-old Muhammad Ali fights 19-year-old Michael Dokes in a 1977 exhibition, allowing Ali to show off his incredible skills.
“I’m gonna get you, old man, so you better get out while you can,” an overconfident Dokes told Sports Illustrated two years before the fight.
Close to the video’s two-minute mark, Ali gets backed into a corner and begins seamlessly dodging Dokes’ punches with mesmerizing speed and agility. For 10 seconds, the late boxing champ dodges a whopping 21 hits and then moves away from the corner with the right amount of swagger, almost like he’s teasing his opponent with a little dance. Dokes ultimately would have to eat the words he said two years earlier.
New Muhammad Ali Film Sheds Light On Ali’s Given Name
Even though Ali passed away in 2016, his memory of being one of the world’s best athletes remains true today. In the newly released film, One Night In Miami, the film centers around Ali’s given name, Cassius Clay.
Now streaming on Amazon Prime, One Night in Miami offers insight into a pivotal moment in Ali’s monumental career.
Ali, known for being a braggadocios boxer, jeopardized his life and career by objecting to America’s involvement in the Vietnam War.
The significance came from the fact that at the time, he was at the height of his career, sitting at 29-0.
One Night in Miami sheds new light on Muhammad Ali’s perspective in 1964. The film gives viewers a glimpse into how the young boxer didn’t change his name for publicity; instead, Malcolm X was the reason for the name change.
The film shows Ali reaching the top of his profession and then losing two of his good friends within a year of becoming the heavyweight champion. Ali would lose another friend when Malcolm X was taken away by assassins in February 1965.
As the movie suggests, the name change wasn’t due to ego but rather a sign of dedication and belief. One Night in Miami indicates that Malcolm X led him to become a more enlightened version of himself.
