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| 1942 | Birth |  |
| 17th Jan Louisville Birth of Muhammad Ali, born Cassius Marcellus Clay, Jr |
| 1960 | Olympic Gold Medal | |
| Wins the Olympic Gold medal & turns professional |
| Rome Wins the Olympic Gold medal & turns professional |
| 1960 | Victory Ali | |
| Ali wins his first professional fight, a six-round decision over Tunney Hunsaker, who was the police chief of Fayetteville, West Virginia |
| 1963 | Victory Ali | |
| Henry Cooper knocks Ali down with a left hook near the end of the fourth round, the fight is stopped in the 5th round due to a deep cut on Cooper's face |
| 1964 | Nation of Islam | |
| Ali reveals that he is a member of the Nation of Islam (often called the Black Muslims) and Malcolm X provides Clay with the name Cassius X, discarding his surname as a symbol of his ancestors' enslavement |
| 6th Mar Elijah Muhammad records a statement over the phone to be played over the radio that Clay will be renamed Muhammad (the prophet of Islam) Ali |
| 6th Mar Malcolm X takes Clay on a guided tour of the United Nations building. Malcolm X announced that Clay would be granted his "X" |
| 1964 | World Champion | |
| 25th Feb Miami Prior to Ali's fight with & defeat of Sonny Liston for his 1st World title he declares that he would "float like a butterfly and sting like a bee" |
| 1965 | World Champion | |
| Retains title by knocking out Sonny Liston |
| 1966 | Draft Refusal Ali | |
| Ali is banned from fighting in the United States and forced to accept bouts abroad for most of 1966 |
| Ali refuses to serve in the United States Army during the Vietnam War as a conscientious objector, because "War is against the teachings of the Holy Qur'an" |
| "I ain't got no quarrel with those Vietcong" and "no Vietcong ever called me nigger" |
| 1967 | Ali | |
| Ali is stripped of his title by the boxing commission and not be allowed to fight professionally for more than 3 yrs, he was also convicted for refusing induction into the army and sentenced to 5 yrs in prison |
| 1967 | Victory Ali | |
| Houston Terrle had called Ali Clay prior to the fight, Ali shouts at his opponent, "What's my name, Uncle Tom ... What's my name." Terrell suffers 15 rounds of brutal punishment, losing 13 of 15 rounds & knocked out |
| 1970 | Ali | |
| Georgia Ali is granted a license to box in Georgia because it was the only state in America without a boxing commission |
| Atlanta Boxing licence restored, returns to the ring but not as world champion |
| The Supreme Court reverses Ali's conviction of imprisonment for not serving in the Army |
| Nov The New York State Supreme Court rules that Ali was unjustly denied a boxing license |
| 1970 | Victory Ali | |
| Oct Ali returns to boxing after 3 yrs and stops Jerry Quarry with a cut after three rounds |
| Dec Ali stops Bonavena in the 15th, paving the way for a title fight against Joe Frazier |
| 1971 | Defeat | |
| 8th Mar Frazier defeats Ali at Madison Square Garden, Ali's 1st defeat, known as '"The Fight of the Century" |
| 1974 | Rumble In The Jungle | |
| 30th Oct Kinshasa Ali regains his title by defeating champion George Foreman in their bizarre bout in Kinshasa, Zaire, hyped as "The Rumble In The Jungle" |
| 1974 | Victory Ali | |
| New York Frazier is defeated by Ali in their 2nd fight & Ali earns a title fight with George Foreman |
| 30th Oct Kinshasa Ali regains his title by defeating champion George Foreman in their bizarre bout in Kinshasa, Zaire, hyped as "The Rumble In The Jungle" |
| 1974 | World Champion | |
| 30th Oct Kinshasa Ali regains his title by defeating champion George Foreman in their bizarre bout in Kinshasa, Zaire, hyped as "The Rumble In The Jungle" |
| 1975 | Conversion | |
| Converts to Sunni Islam |
| 1975 | Victory Ali | |
| Manila Ali defeats Frazier during the "thriller in Manila" |
| 1976 | Victory Ali | |
| 28th Sep New York Muhamid Ali defeats Ken Norton on points in a 15 round championship fight |
| 1977 | Health | |
| Ali's doctor Ferdie Pacheco advises Ali to retire after beginning to see signs of Ali's reflexes slowing down |
| 1978 | Defeat | |
| Feb Ali loses his title to Leon Spinks |
| 1978 | World Champion | |
| Sep Ali regains his title after winning the rematch against Leon Spinks |
| 1979 | Retirement | |
| 27th June Heavyweight Muhammad Ali confirms that his 3rd retirement is final and he vacates the title |
| 1980 | Defeat | |
| 2nd Oct Ali challenges Larry Holmes for the WBC's version of the world Heavyweight title looking to set another record as the first boxer to win the Heavyweight title four times, Ali lost by technical knockout in round eleven |
| 1981 | Retirement | |
| Ali retires permanently with a career record of 56 wins (37 by knockout) and 5 losses, and as a three-time World Heavyweight Boxing Champion |
| 1996 | Olympic Games | |
| Atlanta Lights the Atlantic flame |
| 2000 | Award Sports Person of the Century | |
| Named sports person of the century by the BBC |
| 2000 | Sports Person of the Century Ali | |
| Named sports person of the century by the BBC |
