7 Ups And 10 Downs From Last Night's WWE Raw (June 6)

5. Tribute To The Greatest

Three-time world heavyweight boxing champion Muhammad Ali died at age 74 last week, prompting an outpouring from every corner of the globe. WWE was no exception, airing a series of tweets and social media posts from superstars and Hall of Famers about The greatest.

Alis brash, trash-talking style was inspired by Gorgeous George. In turn, The Greatests interviews and promos would later inspire wrestling legends such as Dusty Rhodes and Superstar Billy Graham. Its no surprise that the polarizing showman Ali would become entangled in the professional wrestling world. In 1976, Ali would enter the squared circle to fight WWE Hall of Famers Antonio Inoki and Gorilla Monsoon, along with a couple other wrestlers.

Of course, Alis most famous association with the WWF came in 1985, when he served as a special guest referee for the main event of WrestleMania I, which pitted Hulk Hogan and Mr. T against Rowdy Roddy Piper and Paul Orndorff. Ali was assigned to the outside of the ring, but briefly got involved when the match broke down.

WWEs tribute was nicely done, as usual, highlighting many of these events and painting a vivid picture for younger wrestling fans.