Muhammad Ali: Heavyweight Champion of the World Subsequent to winning his initial 19 battles, including 15 knockouts, Clay accepted his first title shot on February 25, 1964, against ruling heavyweight champion Sonny Liston (1932-1970). In spite of the fact that he showed up in Miami Beach, Florida, a 7-1 dark horse, the 22-year-old Clay persistently provoked Liston before the battle, promising to "coast like a butterfly, sting like a honey bee" and foreseeing a knockout. At the point when Liston neglected to answer the chime toward the beginning of the seventh round, Clay was in reality delegated heavyweight hero of the world. In the ring after the battle, the new champ thundered, "I'm the best!"