Muhammad Ali that year, before converting to Islam after 1961. At age 22, in 1964, he won the world heavyweight championship from Sonny Liston in a major upset. He then changed his name from Cassius Clay, which he called his "slave name", to Muhammad Ali. He set an example of racial pride for African Americans and resistance to white domination during the Civil Rights Movement. In 1966, two years after winning the heavyweight title, Ali further antagonized the white establishment by refusing to be drafted into the U.S. military, citing his religious beliefs, and opposition to American involvement in the Vietnam War.
Ali (name) Tobago. Ali (name) Ali (, "") is a male Arabic name derived from the Arabic root ʕ-l-w, which literally means "high" , "elevated" or "champion". It is a common name in Arab countries and the rest of the Muslim world. Islamic traditional use of the name goes back to the Islamic leader Ali ibn Abi Talib but the name is also present in some pre-islamic tribesmen (banu hanifa) and identical in form and meaning to the , "Eli", which goes back to the High Priest Eli in the biblical Books of Samuel. The name "Ali" also arises in other traditions.