Muhammad Ali 21 during an elimination bout following Rocky Marciano's retirement. Mike Tyson broke both records in 1986 when he defeated Trevor Berbick to win the heavyweight title at age 20. Soon after the Liston fight, Clay changed his name to Cassius X, and then later to Muhammad Ali upon converting to Islam and affiliating with the Nation of Islam. Ali then faced a rematch with Liston scheduled for May 1965 in Lewiston, Maine. It had been scheduled for Boston the previous November, but was postponed for six months due to Ali's emergency surgery for a hernia three days before. The fight
Muhammad Ali vs. Chuck Wepner sufficiently inspiring for Sylvester Stallone to base the character of Rocky on Wepner, and of Apollo Creed on Ali. Muhammad Ali vs. Chuck Wepner Muhammad Ali and Chuck Wepner fought each other in a boxing match on March 24, 1975 at the Richfield Coliseum in Richfield Township, Summit County, Ohio. This was Ali's first boxing bout after The Rumble in the Jungle. The fight was billed as "Give the White Guy a Break". Ali won the fight after he knocked out Wepner in the fifteenth round.The fight is notable for being among the four fights in which Ali was officially