Pleasure is not happiness. It has no more importance than a shadow following a man.

Pleasure is not happiness. It has no more importance than a shadow following a man.

Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.

Float like a butterfly, sting like a bee.

Statement after losing his first fight to Ken Norton, March 31, 1973: I never thought of losing, but now that read more

Statement after losing his first fight to Ken Norton, March 31, 1973: 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.

Only a man who knows what it is like to be defeated can reach down to the bottom of his read more

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

Service to others is the rent which you pay for your room here on earth.

Service to others is the rent which you pay for your room here on earth.

I'm gonna have to be killed before I lose, and I ain't going to die easy.

I'm gonna have to be killed before I lose, and I ain't going to die easy.

To be a great champion you must believe you are the best. If you're not, pretend you are.

To be a great champion you must believe you are the best. If you're not, pretend you are.

Of course that is not the whole story, but that is the way with stories; we make them what we read more

Of course that is not the whole story, but that is the way with stories; we make them what we will. It's a way of explaining the universe while leaving the universe unexplained, it's a way of keeping it all alive, not boxing it into time. Everyone who tel

My toughest fight was with my first wife.

My toughest fight was with my first wife.