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Bud Grant met Muhammad Ali, didn’t like his style

Related Topics: Bud Grant, Muhammad Ali, Ali

Tributes are pouring in from the sports community after the death of legendary boxer and cultural icon Muhammad Ali. While most of the remembrances have been positive, a few folks have been willing to speak out in a negative way about Ali and his brash, self-promoting personal style.

One of those who wasn’t particularly impressed with the way Ali comported himself? Former Minnesota Vikings head coach Bud Grant.

The 89-year-old Grant told Pioneer-Press reporter Chris Tomasson about his meeting with Ali before a fight at the Astrodome in 1967, describing how everyone lined up to meet the fighter and all he wanted to do was tell everyone how great he was:

“I met him and we shook hands and then he went on to the next guy.