When did the public and media start rooting for Muhammad Ali?

Muhammad Ali was literally chased out of the U.S, especially when he said, I Ain't Got No Quarrel With The Viet Cong. Ali then fought in the UK, Canada, and Germany in 1966. It was a witch hunt on Ali, as no one could defeat him back then.

 

Which is weird because his views were extremely reactionary.

 

I think winning against Foreman pushed his status as a modern day folk hero to be the consensus, more or less.
Love him or hate him or indifferent, at that point it became clear that this man was indeed a legend.

 

Foreman played the villain so Ali definitely got the public's side on that.

I thought by the end of the third Norton fight and definitely when the verdict was read the fans shifted sides to Norton. Ali's second reign once it felt like he stayed too long had the crowd booing when a decision was for him that coulda easily gone to his opponent. Also remember during Thrilla Ali got some boos on top of cheers while Frazier got overwhelmingly cheered.

 

When you read the old newspapers it's noticeable that after the FOTC it becomes much more common for the press to call him Ali instead of Clay. Finally winning his court case may have had something to do with it but I think, as cross_trainer says, defeat made him seem less obnoxious and less threatening.

 

It is related to the war. I do believe that his fight with Joe Frazier helped alot because it's hard to call a guy a coward who can climb off the deck in round 15 from a punch like that. He showed guts, heart black, white, orange, pink, conservative, liberal it was clear. There was something behind all the mouth.

 

In the city of white person USA where I grew up, losing to Frazier brought about the change. For many of my friends and my dad and his friends, Ali being knocked down a peg made him more human and to use your word, less insufferable.