31.   Another oddity was the fate of former heavyweight champion Riddick Bowe, who joined the Marines only to wash out a few days later.

32.   Anything short of that, it was thought, might be the end of his efforts to again become a world heavyweight champion.

33.   And, of course, they laughed at his chances of ever again becoming heavyweight champion.

34.   As Holyfield jokes, Tommy Brooks quietly continues his work, swaddling the hands of the heavyweight champion of the world in white bandages and tape.

35.   As if the promoter of the heavyweight champion were really the heavyweight champion.

36.   As if the cable network that had the heavyweight champion were really the heavyweight champion.

37.   As the title of this new book suggests, Muhammad Ali was far more than the three-time heavyweight champion of the world.

38.   Ask the World Boxing Council heavyweight champion where his soul lies and he will tell you on planet Earth.

39.   At first, you barely noticed that a piece of the heavyweight champion was missing.

40.   At one was Jack Dempsey, the heavyweight boxing champion and a friend of the Harvard trainer, Donovan, who posed for pictures with the players.