In My Sporting Hero, a new podcast series from Nutmeg, footballers talk about the athletes who inspire them. Sometimes those sportsmen and women are also footballers. Sometimes not. You can listen to the audio on this post, on the podcast app of your choice (just search for ‘My Sporting Hero’) or enjoy the written version below.
Our next guest is Kyle Vassell. Kilmarnock captain Vassell is an uncompromising centre-forward, who demands the same high standards from himself as he does from his team-mates. The Northern Ireland international is a man of many clubs, but has thrived under the tutelage of Derek McInnes at Rugby Park.
His sporting hero is Muhammad Ali.
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.
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.”
I got an Ali tattoo when I realised what he actually did for humanity. At a time when the world and especially America was wracked with struggles, he stood up for what he believed in. He chose not to go to the Vietnam War and had his boxing license taken from him – I could only imagine how that must have felt.
On my arm, at the top of my shoulder, it says, ‘I am the Greatest’. I’ve tried to tell myself that because I have always suffered with self-doubt. It’s been my big bugbear because I’m a perfectionist. There are a lot of positives to that, but probably more drawbacks. As I’ve got older and my career has progressed, I’ve learned to not be as much of a perfectionist. When I read about Ali’s psychology, I learned that he simply told himself that he was the greatest. Conor McGregor does the exact same thing. Conor is who he is because he simply told himself how good he was. You start to believe it, eventually.
I did some boxing training when I was growing up, and then went more into Muay Thai and MMA and wrestling and Jiu Jitsu. I loved it – not getting my head punched in, but learning a new discipline and learning discipline, because I was a problem child. Getting into combat sports and martial arts really helped me as an individual. I was causing a lot of trouble, and it was a great way of learning to control myself. When I started doing Muay Thai, I learned that I could actually hurt someone if I kept fighting, because I was fighting a lot, both in school and outside of school.
If I hadn’t started doing Muay Thai and MMA when I did, then I wouldn’t be here because I could not be controlled. I could have gone in any direction, but learning discipline helped me with football. Even in football, I used to make silly mistakes – talking back to managers and trying to fight my own teammates. I tried to have a fight with my manager once. The person I tried to fight is now a mentor and we are so close that I went to his wedding.
I still like to be aggressive, but I’m a lot more controlled than I once was. And I try to lead the way I believe a captain should lead. It may not be to everyone’s preference, but I’ve tried to emulate my favourite captains in how they were on and off the pitch. Sometimes that’s being horrible, and sometimes that’s being the nicest guy and putting my arm around players. I’m quite vocal, but also anyone can speak to me at any time.
My uncle and my cousins on both sides of the family boxed, but I was more interested in MMA. I quit football for a period when I really believed I was going to become a UFC fighter. I tried to base my MMA fighting style on Ali, with his footwork and his training. I had Ali quotes around my bedroom, and he was someone I could try to base my life on.
My Sporting Hero: Kyle Vassell on Muhammad Ali