"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."

"I'm a poet, I'm a writer, I'm a fighter."

"When you are as great as I am, it is hard to be humble."

"To make America the greatest is my goal, so I beat the Russian and I beat the Pole. And for the USA, I won the gold. The Greeks said, 'You're better than the Cassius of old.'"

"I'm the most recognized and loved man that ever lived, 'cause there ain't no black man that can remember all the words to the Star-Spangled Banner."