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.
Before He Cheats the "Billboard" Hot 100 chart, "Before He Cheats" reached number eight and achieved a longevity of 64 consecutive weeks on the chart, making it the sixth longest-charting single in the history of the Hot 100 chart. "Before He Cheats" became the first ever country song to sell over two million digitally and was once the best-selling country song of all time. It had sold 4,312,000 digital downloads as of May 2016, and was once the best-selling song by an "American Idol" contestant but is now the third best-selling (behind Phillip Phillips' "Home" and Kelly Clarkson's "Stronger (What Doesn't Kill You)").