A few nights ago, the WWE announced that Muhammad Ali, recognized by many as the greatest boxer of all time, would be inducted into its Hall of Fame. Ali’s influence transcended sport, as his work as an activist, artist, and personality established him as one of the most renowned figures in the world. Although he is best known as a boxer, Muhammad Ali made a huge impact on the world of sports entertainment, and was truly the world’s first ‘People’s Champion’.

While inducting him into the ceremony, his widow Lonnie Ali had a present for the WWE’s ‘People’s Champion’ Dwayne Johnson. What was the gift? An honorary people’s championship. Something that awed the Rock, but drew the ire of the fans in attendance which prompted a reply from the Rock.

The People’s champion gets the championship

Tonight on the WWE Hall of Fame, the Rock received a brand new honorary championship belt. After Lonnie Ali took over the stage to induct her late husband, she praised Johnson for keeping the ‘People’s Champion’ nickname alive and prominent. And that is when she presented an honorary belt for the Brahma Bull. However, the fans did not approve of the biggest heel in the WWE getting honored like this. So the arena soon filled with boos, prompting the Rock to say, “oh is that right? you wanna boo??”

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Muhammad Ali had quite a huge impact on pro wrestling. On June 26, 1976, Ali competed in ‘War of the Worlds’, an exhibition match against WWE Hall of Famer Antonio Inoki of Japan at Tokyo’s Nippon Budokan Stadium. The fight ended in a draw after 15 rounds in front of a crowd of 32,000 spectators. It was also broadcast on closed-circuit television to nearly 33,000 fans at Shea Stadium in Queens, New York. The event was a huge success and attracted countless fans of the industry, while also being considered a precursor to modern mixed martial arts. Both Ali and Inoki became friends after the event, and even Inoki used Ali’s theme song and slogans as his own.

After retiring from boxing with a record of 56 wins and 5 losses, with 37 knockouts, Ali came to the WWE, where he acted as a special guest referee at the first WrestleMania in 1984. During the main event where Hulk Hogan and Mr. T teamed up to beat Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff. The decisive moment of the match was when Ali hit Piper with his trademark right hand, a move that restored order to the fight.

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Muhammad Ali passed away on June 3, 2016, at the age of 74, but his legacy as one of the greatest athletes lives on, and his work to modernize and globalize professional wrestling helped seamlessly merge the worlds of sports and entertainment.

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