- Laila Ali
Infobox_Boxer
name = Laila Ali
nationality =flagicon|USA American
realname = Laila Ali
nickname = Lay Lay
height = height|m=1.78 [http://www.usatoday.com/sports/boxing/2007-01-18-ali-laila_x.htm Like dad, Ali's daughter rules the ring] , accessed: 2008-01-12]
weight =Super middleweight , 76 kg
reach = 1.79 m
birth_date = birth date and age|1977|12|30
birth_place =Miami Beach, Florida
home =Los Angeles, California
style = Orthodox
total = 24
wins = 24
KO = 21
losses = 0
draws = 0
no contests = 0Laila Ali (born
December 30 ,1977 inOcala, Florida ) is aprofessional boxer . She is the daughter ofMuhammad Ali and his third wifeVeronica Porsche Ali . She was their second child and is the most famous of the nine children born to Muhammad Ali.Ali has a degree in business from
Santa Monica College and previously owned a Balloon and Halloween mask shop inCalifornia before becoming a boxer. She is 1.78 m, with a reach of 1.79 m, and weighs around 76 kg.Boxing career
In her first bout, on
December 8 1999 , Ali knocked outApril Fowler in the first round. She ran off eight wins in a row and many boxing fans started talking about wanting to see her square off in a boxing ring withGeorge Foreman 's daughter,Freeda Foreman , or Joe Frazier's daughter,Jackie Frazier-Lyde . On the evening ofJune 8 ,2001 , Ali and Frazier finally met. The fight was nicknamed "Ali/Frazier IV" in allusion to their fathers' famous fight trilogy. Ali won by a majority judges' decision in eight rounds. It should be noted that she was 16 years younger than Jackie.After a year's hiatus, on
June 7 2002 Ali beatShirvelle Williams in a six-round decision. She won the IBA title with a second-round knockout ofSuzette Taylor onAugust 17 in Las Vegas. OnNovember 9 , she retained that title and unified the crown by adding the WIBA and IWBF belts with an eight-round knockout win over her division's other world champion,Valerie Mahfood , in Las Vegas.On
June 21 2003 , Ali retained the title in a rematch with Mahfood, knocking her out in six rounds. It was announced onJune 30 , that she would fight Christy Martin onAugust 23 . She beat Martin by a knockout in four rounds.Ali was to begin 2004 by fighting
Gwendolyn O'Neil ofGuyana atAbuja ,Nigeria . The fight was canceled, however, when Ali's camp learned no airline had flights scheduled to Nigeria on the date she wanted to arrive there.On
July 17 of that year, she retained her world title, knocking outNikki Eplion in four rounds. Ali dropped Eplion four times before the fight was stopped.Thirteen days later, she stopped
Monica Nunez in nine rounds, in her father's native city of Louisville. This fight was part of the undercard for the fight in whichMike Tyson was surprisingly knocked out by fringe contender Danny WilliamsOn
September 24 2004 , she added the IWBF Light Heavyweight title to her resume by beating O'Neil (whom she had canceled a fight against) by a knockout in three rounds, atAtlanta, Georgia . OnFebruary 1 2005 in Atlanta, Ali scored a commanding and decisive eighth round technical knockout overCassandra Geigger in a ten-round fight.On
June 11 2005 , on the undercard to the Tyson-Kevin McBride fight, Ali poundedErin Toughill into submission in round three to remain undefeated, and won theWorld Boxing Council title in addition to defending her WIBA crown. (The Ali-Toughill bout is considered one of the most violent female to female fights in history.) She was the second woman to win a WBC title (Jackie Nava was the first). Toughill and Ali disliked each other, and prior to the fight Toughill joked about Ali. Ali promised she would punish Toughill, much like her father did withErnie Terrell back in 1967. OnDecember 17 2005 , in Berlin, Laila fought and defeatedÅsa Sandell by TKO in the fifth round, marking her 22nd win. The decision was heavily disputed however, and the audience booed Ali during her post-fight interview. While a guest onQuite Frankly with Stephen A. Smith onJune 7 2006 , Ali announced that she would be making a world tour, and said that she was looking forward to fightingAnn Wolfe on an October 2006 date. The fight with Wolfe never materialized. Instead, onNovember 11 2006 , Ali fought and defeatedShelley Burton byTKO in the fourth round.Ali was supposed to fight O’Neil again in Cape Town, on
August 5 2006 , but she pulled out amid allegations of fraud. In addition, the local promoter couldn't raise the final $325,000 installment of her $525,000 purse. The South African government is investigating the fraud allegations, according to an exposé in the "Cape Times ".On
February 3 2007 in Johannesburg, Ali retained her WBC and WIBA super middleweight world titles, knocking out Gwendolyn O'Neil at 56 seconds of the first round. Ali headlined the first women's professional boxing match inSouth Africa . She improved to 24-0. Boxing has also led her into a TV show guest star such as a boxing epesode ofGeorge Lopez (TV series) Criticism
Other top women's boxing champions such as
Ann Wolfe (24-1),Vonda Ward (22-1),Leatitia Robinson (15-0 pro; 37-1 am), and Natasha Ragosina (15-0) have claimed in interviews that they have challenged Laila Ali many times over the years, but Laila has always found ways of avoiding them. Boxing writers and fans have repeatedly expressed disappointment in Ali's failure to fight the top contenders over the years.Personal life
The youngest daughter of Muhammad Ali. [cite web |url=http://www.usatoday.com/sports/boxing/2007-01-18-ali-laila_x.htm |title=Like dad, Ali's daughter rules the ring|accessdate=2008-09-12 |publisher=USATODAY.com ,By Chuck Johnson|date=2007-01-18 ] Ali married Johnny "Yahya" McClain on
August 27 2000 . She met McClain through her sister Hana at her father's 57th birthday party. McClain became Ali's manager and helped guide her career. In 2002 she wrote (with co-authorDavid Ritz ) the book "Reach! Finding Strength, Spirit, and Personal Power", meant to motivate and inspire young women. [ [http://www.amazon.com/dp/0786887362 Amazon.Com: Reach!: Finding Strength, Spirit, And Personal Power: Laila Ali: Books ] ] She has said her favorite books includeThe Wonderful Wizard of Oz andThe Color Purple . [ [http://www.newyorktimesbestsellerlist.org/reviews/laila-ali Laila Ali] ] In late 2005 Ali and McClain divorced and McClain quit managing Ali. OnJuly 23 2007 , Ali married former NFL playerCurtis Conway inLos Angeles . Laila has three stepchildren with Conway, twelve-year-old twin sons Cameron and Kelton and eight-year-old Leilani. [ [http://www.sportsline.com/nfl/story/10266153 References Lailia's marriage and her stepchildren] ] In People Magazine, Laila Ali reported she does not follow her father's religion but respects it. Laila told Essence in its May 2008 issue that she was expecting her first child with her husband, Curtis Conway.Laila gave birth to her son Curtis Muhammad Conway Jr. on
August 26 ,2008 . He weighed in at 6 pounds 8 ounces and 19 inches long. There were reports that there were some complications during birth, but those proved to be false."Dancing with the Stars"
In mid-2007, Ali was a participant in the fourth season of the American version of the television show "Dancing with the Stars". [cite news |title=Meet the New Cast of 'Dancing With the Stars| last=unknown|url=http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Entertainment/story?id=2890554&page=1
work=ABC.com Dancing with the Stars|date=February 20 ,2007 |accessdate=2007-02-21] She had no previous dancing experience. Her professional dancing partner wasMaksim Chmerkovskiy . The pair were widely praised by the judges, receiving the first "10" from judgeLen Goodman for their rumba. They came in third place in the competition, losing toApolo Anton Ohno (withJulianne Hough ) andJoey Fatone (withKym Johnson )."American Gladiators"
Laila is the new female host on the revival of American Gladiators alongside
Hulk Hogan . The show premiered in January 2008. [cite news|url=http://www.gladiatorszone.co.uk/international/america/newseries.php|title=Laila Ali and Hulk Hogan are confirmed as new presenters of American Gladiators|accessdate=2007-10-31|date=2007-10-31 |publisher=Gladiators Zone]Laila and the cast of American Gladiators appeared on the new NBC Celebrity Family Feud.
"The Early Show"
Laila also has joined the CBS team as a contributing correspondent on "
The Early Show " with her first appearance in early January 2008."
The N's Student Body "Laila Ali began hosting the new reality show on
The N . This show is about teens trying to get into shape. She currently isn't shooting the show anymore.References
* http://www.eastsideboxing.com/news.php?p=522&more=1
* http://forums.doghouseboxing.com/lofiversion/index.php/t112741.html
* http://www.womenboxing.com/news062204commentsaliwolfe.htm
* http://www.wban.org/biog/awolfe.htm
* http://www.talkingboxing.com/interviews/2005/vondawardinterview.htmlExternal links
* [http://www.lailaali.com/ Laila Ali's Official site]
* [http://www.hossli.com/articles/2007/06/01/laila-ali-%c2%abim-a-stronger-puncher-than-my-father-was%c2%bb/ Interview with Laila Ali 2007]
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* [http://www.newsamericanow.com/profiles/laila-ali/ Laila Ali news, pictures]
* [http://www.newyorktimesbestsellerlist.org/reviews/laila-ali Laila Ali]
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