|
Contact Laila Ali |
| Full Name: | Laila Ali |
Get that fuzzy feeling inside...

Title: Laila Ali vs. Shelley Burton @ Madison Square Garden
Description: Laila Ali vs. Shelley Burton @ Madison Square Garden, 12.11.06

Title: Laila Ali & Maks 2nd Paso Doble (Full Clip)
Description: Laila and Maksim Chmerkovskiy perform the Paso Doble on DWtS. Includes the rehearsal footage, judges scores, and backstage interview.

Title: Laila Ali Speaks Her Mind
Description: From the upcoming Laila Ali documentary entitled DADDYS GIRL, directed by Reggie Rock Bythewood and airing on Fathers Day on TV One ...
Laila Ali & Son Leave LAX Celebrity Baby Scoop (blog) Boxer Laila Ali and her adorable 18-month-old son Curtis Muhammad Conway Jr were spotted as LAX on Monday (March 1) as they prepared for their departure. ... |
Cherokee Inc. Facilitates Agreement for the Laila Ali Brand MarketWatch (press release) Tony Eluck, President, International Beauty Brands, said, "We are excited to be part of Laila Ali's consumer product strategy. Our initial responses in the ... |
![]() A.V. Club | Ann Wolfe scares the crap out of us A.V. Club ... who have captured both championships and the public's imagination?among them Laila Ali, Leatitia "Baby Girl" Robinson, and Austin's very own Ann Wolfe. ... |
Ann Wolfe Talks James Kirkland, Laila Ali, Career, More BoxingScene.com Many have wondered why a fight with Laila Ali never happened. Keep reading to get some insight into her goals, missions, and her pupil James Kirkland: ... |
Dancing with the Stars 2010 lineup: Will athletes continue the domination Gather.com ... NFL linebacker Jason Taylor in season 6, boxer Floyd Mayweather, Jr. in season 5, Clyde Drexler and Laila Ali in season 4 and Stacy Keibler in Season 2. ... |
Chevelle Hallback Interview EastsideBoxing.com She wanted to fight Laila Ali and Laila Ali ran from her and did not give her the opportunity to fight her. I really respect her. Let's see, who else? ... |
American Gladiators Auditions Auditions for Disney (blog) The NO-HOLDS-BARRED hit competition series returns to prime-time television, with hosts Hulk Hogan and Laila Ali! We are looking for weekend warrior types ... |
![]() Zap2it.com (blog) | 'Dancing With the Stars': Mel B., Drew Lachey as co-host? Vote! Zap2it.com (blog) As long as we're looking at past contestants, why not consider the lovely Laila Ali, Stacy Keibler or Jane Seymour? If you want wacky or funny, ... |
AT&T increases social media for 2010 Black History Month effort DM News Boxer Laila Ali will speak in Oakland on February 9, while hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons will appear in Washington, DC the next day. ... |
A jump rope marathon at AC Stelle Middle School Agoura Hills Acorn Above right, boxing pro Laila Ali, daughter of the great Muhammad Ali, was on hand to give the students encouragement during the Feb. ... |
|
Laila Ali
|
| Statistics | |
|---|---|
| Real name | Laila Ali |
| Nickname(s) | Lay Lay |
| Rated at | Super middleweight, 72.5 kg1 |
| Height | 1.78 m (5 ft 10 in)1 |
| Reach | 1.79 m |
| Nationality | |
| Birth date | December 30, 1977 |
| Birth place | Miami Beach, Florida |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 24 |
| Wins | 24 |
| Wins by KO | 21 |
| Losses | 0 |
| Draws | 0 |
| No contests | 0 |
Laila Ali (born December 30, 1977 in Miami Beach, Florida) is a professional boxer. She is the daughter of boxing legend Muhammad Ali and his third wife Veronica 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 in California before becoming a boxer. She is 5' 10" (1.78 m), with a reach of 70.4" , and weighs around 160 lbs (72.5 kg).
Contents |
In her first bout, on December 8, 1999, Ali knocked out April 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 with George Foreman's daughter, Freeda Foreman, or Joe Frazier's daughter, Jackie Frazier-Lyde. On the evening of June 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.
After a year's hiatus, on June 7, 2002 Ali beat Shirvelle Williams in a six-round decision. She won the IBA title with a second-round knockout of Suzette Taylor on August 17 in Las Vegas. On November 9, she retained that title and unified the crown by adding the WIBA and IWBF belts with an eight-round TKO win over her division's other world champion, Valerie Mahfood, in Las Vegas. Mahfood and Laila Ali met in a long awaited bout on November 8, 2002. A bloodied Mahfood was stopped by Ali in eight rounds in a fight that unified the IWBF world title with the WIBA title.
On June 21, 2003, Mahfood and Ali had a rematch, this time in Los Angeles. Once again bloodied by Muhammad Ali's daughter, Mahfood lost by TKO in six while trying to recover her world title. But at the same time, for the first time in Laila Ali's boxing career, she suffered a bad cut on her right eyelid and a bloodied nose, something no other female boxer has done to Laila Ali to this day. Laila was left with a permanent scar as a reminder of that tough fight she had with Mahfood. On August 23, 2003, Ali fought Christy Martin. She beat Martin by a knockout in four rounds.
On July 17, 2004, she retained her world title, knocking out Nikki Eplion in four rounds. Ali dropped Eplion four times before the fight was stopped. 30 July 2004, 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 which Mike Tyson was surprisingly knocked out by fringe contender Danny Williams. On 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, at Atlanta, Georgia. Her success led her into a TV show guest star such as in a boxing episode of George Lopez.
On February 1, 2005 in Atlanta, Ali scored a commanding and decisive eighth round technical knockout over Cassandra Geigger in a ten-round fight. On June 11, 2005, on the undercard to the Tyson-Kevin McBride fight, Ali pounded Erin Toughill into submission in round three to remain undefeated, and won the World 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 with Ernie Terrell back in 1967. On December 17, 2005, in Berlin, Laila fought and defeated Åsa Sandell by TKO in the fifth round. The decision was heavily disputed. The audience booed Ali during her post-fight interview.
While a guest on Quite Frankly with Stephen A. Smith on June 7, 2006, Ali announced that she would be making a world tour, and said that she was looking forward to fighting Ann Wolfe on an October 2006 date. The fight with Wolfe never materialized. Instead, on November 11, 2006, Ali fought and defeated Shelley Burton by TKO 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 $1,325,000 installment of her $1,525,000 purse. The South African government is investigating the fraud allegations, according to an exposé in the Cape Times.
| 24 Wins (21 knockouts, 3 decisions), 0 Losses (0 decisions, 0 retirement), 0 Draws | |||||||
| Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Rd, Time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | 2-0-0 | TKO | 4 | 1999-11-10 | |||
| Win | 1-0-0 | KO | 1 (15) | 1999-12-08 | |||
Other top women's boxing champions such as Ann Wolfe (24-1), Vonda Ward (23-1), Leatitia Robinson (15-1 pro; 37-1 am), and Natasha Ragosina (21-0) 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.
In 2002 Ali wrote (with co-author David Ritz) the book Reach! Finding Strength, Spirit, and Personal Power, meant to motivate and inspire young people. Like her father, Ali is a Muslim.2
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 late 2005 Ali and McClain divorced and McClain quit managing Ali. On July 23, 2007, Ali married former NFL player Curtis Conway in Los Angeles. Laila has three stepchildren with Conway, twelve-year-old twin sons Cameron and Kelton and eight-year-old Leilani.3 In August 26, 2008 Laila gave birth to her son Curtis Muhammad Conway Jr.
In mid-2007, Ali was a participant in the fourth season of the American version of the television show Dancing with the Stars.4 She had no previous dancing experience. Her professional dancing partner was Maksim Chmerkovskiy. The pair were widely praised by the judges, receiving the first "10" from judge Len Goodman for their rumba. They came in third place in the competition, losing to Apolo Anton Ohno (with Julianne Hough) and Joey Fatone (with Kym Johnson).
Laila is the new female host on the revival of American Gladiators alongside Hulk Hogan. The show premiered in January 2008.5
Laila and the cast of American Gladiators appeared on the new NBC Celebrity Family Feud.
Laila also has joined the CBS team as a contributing correspondent on The Early Show with her first appearance in early January 2008.
Laila Ali began hosting The N's Student Body, the new reality show on The N. This show is about teens trying to get into shape. She is no longer shooting the show.
Laila also appeared in a 2007 episode of Yo Gabba Gabba titled "Train" in a brief dance number.
| Preceded by Valerie Mahfood |
2nd IWBF World Super Middleweight Champion November 8, 2002 – 2007 |
Current holder |
| 2nd WIBA World Super Middleweight Champion November 8, 2002 – 2007 |
||
| New award | 1st WBC Female World Super Middleweight Champion November 11, 2006 – 2007 |
|
| Preceded by Mike Adamle (1989–96) Dan Clark (1995–96) |
Host of American Gladiators with Hulk Hogan 2008–present |
Incumbent |
|
||||||||||||||||