In boxing, I had a lot of fear. Fear was good. But, for the first time, in the bout with Muhammad Ali, I didn’t have any fear. I thought, “This is easy. This is what I’ve been waiting for”. No fear at all. No nervousness. And I lost.
Today the biggest decisions I make aren’t related to the heavyweight title. They are whether I visit McDonalds, Burger King, Wendy’s, or Jack-in-the-Box.
I respect that you want to protect your niece. You know, I didn’t want my daughter to become a boxer. Neither did Mohammad. But Joe Frazier, on the other hand, he had his baby girl boxing in the crib.
That’s my gift. I let that negativity roll off me like water off a duck’s back. If it’s not positive, I didn’t hear it. If you can overcome that, fights are easy.
