Battle of the icons

[Wolverine]

Originally Posted by Writehooks

I live and work (as a sportswriter) in China, where the NBA reigns supreme and Jordan is still phenomenally popular. That said, MJ's appeal doesn't hold a candle to Ali's in the world's most populous nation. People here -- all age groups, from middle school kids to octagenarians -- recognize Jordan as a great athlete, but that's it. Ali, as he did in so many other corners of the globe, struck a chord with the Chinese as both a great athlete and as a great human being, whose imapact outside the ring was even more impressive than what he accomplished as a boxer. That's not likely to change -- here, or anywhere else on the planet. For my money, Ali will always be No 1 in global terms, with Pele, Jordan and Tiger Woods also in the conversation. Babe Ruth and Wayne Gretzky barely register on the scale, outside North America. BTW: As a Canadian, I feel confident in predicting that no hockey jersey -- not Gretzky's rookie, not Orr's, not Gordie Howe's -- will ever sell for more than the $1.3 million it took four years ago to acquire Paul Henderson's 1972 Team Canada jersey from the fabled "Summit Series" against the USSR.

Thanks for the insight. These are great points, and I agree that Ali's fame is unmatched around the world. The only thing I question is whether or not this actually transfers over into the memorabilia market. While Ali's appeal is second to none worldwide, his memorabilia still doesn't hold a candle to Babe Ruth. Right after Ali's death, when his memorabilia was on fire and he was in the news every day, I believe the highest price paid for one of his items was $606,000 for his gloves worn in the "Fight of the Century" bout against Frazier at Madison Square Garden.

This is a far cry from the $717,000 paid for Babe Ruth's 1921 59th home run bat, the $996,000 for his Red Sox/Yankees trade agreement contract, the $1.2 million for his 1923 bat used to hit the first HR at Yankee Stadium, the $4.2 million paid for his 1920 Yankees jersey, etc. etc.