Kyle Vassell’s Sporting Hero: Muhammad Ali

Kyle Vassell admits his sporting hero is Muhammad Ali – and says his first son would always be named after the boxing legend.

The Kilmarnock captain admits he ends up down “rabbit holes” watching videos of Ali, born Cassius Clay, and has already got his young son watching arguably the greatest heavyweight of all time.

Vassell said: “My son’s name is Cassius. I told my missus: ‘If and when we have kids, if it’s a boy, this is going to be his name.’ Luckily, she loved the name. We’ve already had the YouTube clips up!

“He doesn’t have a clue what’s going on – he’s only 10 months old, but he slaps the TV thinking that he’s trying to fight Ali! I can’t wait to show him more. I won’t be saying, ‘This is who you’re named after, this is who you have to be.’ Just: ‘This man gave me the inspiration to name you Cassius, and hopefully you can find some inspiration in his story as well.’”

Vassell continued: “Muhammad Ali had everyone in the palm of his hand. Whether it be journalists, commentators and, by the end, even the people he fought against.

“I could sit watching him for hours. With football, I get bored after a while. I’ll watch Karim Benzema because I still think he’s one of the greatest strikers, but after half an hour, I’ll turn it off.

“But with Ali, I’ll go down a rabbit hole: his interviews, how he speaks, how clever he was, why he became Muslim. There was just so much to him. It felt like he was more than a person, more than an athlete.

People mimic Ali and still try to fight like him to this day. He changed his sport, and the same thing sometimes happens in football.

“My footballing hero is the Brazilian Ronaldo because he just changed the way a striker plays. Thierry Henry came after him and did the same thing. For me, the people who can change the progression of a sport are the special ones.”

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