Muhammad Ali 181 by Andy Warhol is one of four portraits in the 1978 Muhammad Ali portfolio. Andy Warhol screenprinted each portrait in the suite on Strathmore Bristol Paper. The Muhammad Ali portfolio is a part of Warhol’s larger Athletes series, commissioned by Richard Weisman in 1977. 

The Athletes series features ten of the most talented athletes of the time. Alongside Muhammad Ali 181, the series includes O.J. Simpson, Dorothy Hamill, Pelé, Jack Nicklaus, Rod Gilbert, Tom Seaver, Willie Shoemaker, Chris Evert, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar. Commissioner Richard Weisman selected each athlete, and Warhol photographed them with his trusty Polaroid camera. He then used Polaroid shots as the source images for the portraits.