Laila Ali | |
|---|---|
 Ali in 2017 | |
| Born | Laila Amaria Ali (1977-12-30)December 30, 1977 (age 47) Miami Beach, Florida, U.S. |
| Alma mater | Santa Monica College |
| Spouses | |
| Children | 2 |
| Father | Muhammad Ali |
| Relatives |
|
| Boxing career | |
| Other names | She Bee'[1] Madame Butterfly Pretty Baby |
| Statistics | |
| Weight(s) | Super middleweight Light heavyweight |
| Height | 5 ft9+3⁄4 in (177.2 cm)[1] |
| Reach | 70+1⁄2 in (179 cm)[1] |
| Stance | Orthodox |
| Boxing record | |
| Total fights | 24 |
| Wins | 24 |
| Wins by KO | 21 |
| Losses | 0 |
Laila Amaria Ali (born December 30, 1977) is an American television personality and retiredprofessional boxer who competed from 1999 to 2007. During her career, from which she retired undefeated, she held theWBC,WIBA, IWBF and IBA femalesuper middleweight titles, and the IWBFlight heavyweight title. Ali is widely regarded by many within the sport as one of the greatest female professional boxers of all time.[2] She is the daughter of boxerMuhammad Ali.[3]
Laila Amaria Ali was born December 30, 1977, inMiami Beach, Florida, the daughter of boxerMuhammad Ali and his third wife,Veronica Porché.[4] Her parents divorced when she was nine years old.[5] She was raised as aMuslim, but later leftIslam despite her father's initial disapproval.[6][7] Ali was a manicurist at age 16. Her turbulent childhood of arrests[8] and abuse[9] led to her to living in a group home for girls. She graduated fromCalifornia'sSanta Monica College with a business degree.[10] She owned her own nail salon before she began boxing.[11][12] According to Ali, her father opposed her decision to become a boxer due to his Muslim faith; in an interview she said, "My father first of all, did not believe that women should be boxing. My father was Muslim, I'm not. He was a little bit of a male chauvinist in a way."[7]
Ali began boxing when she was 18 years old, after having first noticed women's boxing when watching aChristy Martin fight.[13][14] She first publicized her decision to become a professional boxer in aGood Morning America interview withDiane Sawyer.[15] When she first told her father, Muhammad Ali that she was planning to box professionally, he was unhappy about her entering such a dangerous profession.[16] In her first match, on October 8, 1999, the 5-foot-10-inch (1.78 m), 166-pound (75 kg), 21-year-old Ali boxed April Fowler of Michigan City, Indiana. They fought at theTurning Stone Resort & Casino on theOneida Indian Nation inVerona, New York. Although this was Ali's first match, many journalists and fans attended, largely because she was Muhammad Ali's daughter.
Attention to Ali's ring debut was further boosted because it occurred on the eve of what was supposed to be the first male-female professional bout ever to be sanctioned by a US state boxing commission – later ruled an exhibition. As WomenBoxing.com explains: "The near-alignment of the two events focused more attention on female professional boxing than there had been since Christy Martin's 1996pay-per-view fight withDeirdre Gogarty." Aliknocked out Fowler – described by WomenBoxing.com as an "out-of-shape novice" – in the first round.[3] Ali also won her second match by aTKO with only 3 seconds left on the clock. In that match her opponent was 5'4" Shadina Pennybaker, from Pittsburgh, who was making a pro debut after earning a 2–1 record as an amateur. They fought at theMountaineer Casino, Racetrack and Resort inChester, West Virginia.[3]
Ali captured nine wins in a row and many boxing fans expressed a desire to see her square off in a boxing ring withGeorge Foreman's daughter, Freeda Foreman, orJoe Frazier's daughter,Jacqui Frazier-Lyde. On the evening of June 8, 2001, Ali and Frazier finally met. The fight was nicknamedAli/Frazier IV in allusion to their fathers' famous fight trilogy. Ali won by a majority judges' decision in eight rounds (79–73, 77–75, 76–76). Frazier-Lyde ended the fight with a swollen eye while Ali had a fractured left collarbone and a bloodied nose. This match by Ali and Frazier was the first main-event pay-per-view match between two women. After a year's hiatus, on June 7, 2002, Ali beat Shirvelle Williams in a six-round decision.[17]
She won the IBA title with a second-round knockout of Suzette Taylor on August 17, 2002, in Las Vegas.[18] On November 8, she retained that title and unified the crown by adding theWIBA and IWBF belts with an eight-round TKO win over her division's other world champion,Valerie Mahfood, in Las Vegas. Ali stopped a bloodied Mahfood in eight rounds.[19] On June 21, 2003, Mahfood and Ali fought a rematch, this time in Los Angeles. Once again bloodied by Ali, Mahfood lost by TKO in six rounds while trying to recover her world title. Nevertheless, Ali suffered a bad cut on her right eyelid for the first time in her career, inflicted by Mahfood. Ali also suffered a bloodied nose for the second time in her career during this fight, the first being in Ali's fight with Frazier-Lyde two years previously.[20] On August 23, 2003, Ali fought her original inspiration,Christy Martin, beating Martin by a knockout in four rounds.[21] On July 17, 2004, Ali retained her world title, knocking out Nikki Eplion in four rounds.[22]
On July 30, 2004, she stoppedMonica Nunez in nine rounds, in her father's native city ofLouisville, Kentucky. This fight was part of theundercard for the fight in whichMike Tyson was surprisingly knocked out by fringe contenderDanny Williams.[23] On September 24, 2004, Ali added the IWBF Light Heavyweight title to her resume by beating Gwendolyn O'Neil (whom she had earlier canceled a fight against) by a knockout in three rounds, atAtlanta, Georgia.[24] On February 1, 2005, in Atlanta, Ali scored a commanding and decisive eighth-round technical knockout over Cassandra Geiggar in a ten-round fight.[25]
On June 11, 2005, on the undercard to the Tyson-Kevin McBride fight, Ali defeatedErin Toughill in round three to remain undefeated and won theWorld Boxing Council title in addition to defending her WIBA crown.[26] She was the second woman to win a WBC title (Jackie Nava was the first).[27] 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.[26] On December 17, 2005, inBerlin, Ali fought and defeatedÅsa Sandell by TKO in the fifth round. Following Ali's hard right to Sandell's face with 17 seconds remaining in Round 5, Sandell was struck by numerous undefended shots to her head. The referee stopped the bout with 12 seconds remaining. Muhammad Ali was in attendance and kissed his daughter.[28]
While a guest onQuite 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 fightingAnn Wolfe in October 2006.[14] However, the fight with Wolfe never materialized. Instead, on November 11, 2006, Ali fought and defeated Shelley Burton by TKO in the fourth round.[29] Ali was rescheduled to fight O'Neil inCape Town, on August 5, 2006, but Ali pulled out amid allegations of fraud.[30] The match eventually took place in South Africa on February 2, 2007.[31] Ali defeated O'Neil in the first-round by technical knockout.[32] It was Ali's last professional fight.
| 24 fights | 24 wins | 0 losses |
|---|---|---|
| By knockout | 21 | 0 |
| By decision | 3 | 0 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 24 | Win | 24–0 | Gwendolyn O'Neil | TKO | 1 (10),0:56 | Feb 3, 2007 | Kempton Park, South Africa | Retained WBC female and WIBA super middleweight titles |
| 23 | Win | 23–0 | Shelley Burton | TKO | 4 (10),1:58 | Nov 11, 2006 | New York City, New York, U.S. | Retained WBC female and WIBA super middleweight titles |
| 22 | Win | 22–0 | Åsa Sandell | TKO | 5 (10),1:51 | Dec 17, 2005 | Berlin, Germany | |
| 21 | Win | 21–0 | Erin Toughill | TKO | 3 (10),1:54 | Jun 11, 2005 | Washington, D.C.,Washington, U.S. | Retained WIBA super middleweight title; Won inauguralWBC female super middleweight title |
| 20 | Win | 20–0 | Cassandra Geiggar | TKO | 8 (10),1:13 | Feb 11, 2005 | Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. | Retained WIBA super middleweight title |
| 19 | Win | 19–0 | Gwendolyn O'Neil | KO | 3 (10),1:59 | Sep 24, 2004 | Atlanta, Georgia, U.S. | Won vacant WIBFlight heavyweight title |
| 18 | Win | 18–0 | Monica Nunez | TKO | 9 (10),0:42 | Jul 30, 2004 | Louisville, Kentucky, U.S. | Retained WIBF super middleweight title |
| 17 | Win | 17–0 | Nikki Eplion | TKO | 4 (10),1:30 | Jul 17, 2004 | Bowie, Maryland, U.S. | Retained IBA female super middleweight title |
| 16 | Win | 16–0 | Christy Martin | KO | 4 (10),0:28 | Aug 23, 2003 | Biloxi, Mississippi, U.S. | Retained IBA female super middleweight title |
| 15 | Win | 15–0 | Valerie Mahfood | TKO | 6 (8),1:17 | June 21, 2003 | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | |
| 14 | Win | 14–0 | Mary Ann Almager | TKO | 4 (10),0:55 | Feb 14, 2003 | Louisville, Kentucky, U.S. | Retained IBA, WIBF, and WIBA super-middleweight titles |
| 13 | Win | 13–0 | Valerie Mahfood | TKO | 8 (10),1:14 | Nov 8, 2002 | Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. | Retained IBA female super middleweight title; WonWIBF andWIBA super middleweight titles |
| 12 | Win | 12–0 | Suzette Taylor | TKO | 2 (10),1:11 | Aug 17, 2002 | Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. | Won inaugural IBA femalesuper middleweight title |
| 11 | Win | 11–0 | Shirvelle Williams | UD | 6 | Jun 7, 2002 | Southaven, Mississippi, U.S. | |
| 10 | Win | 10–0 | Jacqui Frazier-Lyde | MD | 8 | Jun 8, 2001 | Verona, New York, U.S. | |
| 9 | Win | 9–0 | Christine Robinson | TKO | 5 (6),1:50 | Mar 2, 2001 | Verona, New York, U.S. | |
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Kendra Lenhart | UD | 6 | Oct 20, 2000 | Auburn Hills, Michigan, U.S. | |
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Marjorie Jones | TKO | 1 (6),1:08 | Jun 15, 2000 | Universal City, California, U.S. | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Kristina King | TKO | 4 (4),0:37 | Apr 22, 2000 | Guangzhou, China | |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Karen Bill | TKO | 3 (4),1:40 | Apr 8, 2000 | Detroit, Michigan, U.S. | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Crystal Arcand | KO | 1 (4),1:10 | Mar 7, 2000 | Windsor, Ontario, Canada | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Nicolyn Armstrong | TKO | 2 (4),1:00 | Dec 10, 1999 | Cobo Center,Detroit, Michigan, U.S. | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Shadina Pennybaker | TKO | 4 (4),1:47 | Nov 11, 1999 | Mountaineer Casino, Racetrack and Resort,Chester, West Virginia, U.S. | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | April Fowler | KO | 1 (4),0:31 | Oct 8, 1999 | Turning Stone Resort Casino,Verona, New York, U.S. |
In 2000, Ali played herself in an episode ofThe Jersey called "Bat Girl"[34] in which Morgan Hudson (played byCourtnee Draper) turns to her in order to get a little more of a perspective as she learns the true meaning of girl power. In 2002, she appeared as herself on theUPN sitcomsOne on One andGirlfriends. In early 2002, Ali appeared in a boxing role for themusic video "Deny" by Canadianhard rock bandDefault.[35] The video gained airplay on music channels includingMTV2 andMMUSA. In 2004, Ali appeared on theGeorge Lopez show, where she owned a gym,[36] as well as onReal Husbands of Hollywood.[37]
In mid-2007, Ali was a participant inseason four of the American version of the television showDancing with the Stars;[38] she had no previous dancing experience. She and her professional dancing partner,Maksim Chmerkovskiy, were widely praised by the judges, receiving the first "10" from judgeLen Goodman for theirrumba. They came in third place in the competition, losing toApolo Anton Ohno (withJulianne Hough) andJoey Fatone (withKym Johnson).[39]
Dancing with the Stars performances
| Week # | Dance / Song | Judges' scores | Result | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Inaba | Goodman | Tonioli | |||
| 1 | Foxtrot / "How Sweet It Is (To Be Loved by You)" | 7 | 8 | 8 | No Elimination |
| 2 | Mambo / "Maracaibo Oriental" | 9 | 9 | 9 | Safe |
| 3 | Tango / "Goldfinger" | 7 | 7 | 7 | Safe |
| 4 | Paso Doble / "Les Toreadors" | 7 | 7 | 7 | Safe |
| 5 | Rumba / "Put Your Records On" | 9 | 10 | 9 | Safe |
| 6 | Cha-Cha-Cha / "Hold on, I'm Comin'" | 9 | 9 | 10 | Safe |
| 7 | Quickstep / "Part-Time Lover" Samba / "Brazil" | 10 10 | 9 10 | 10 10 | Safe |
| 8 | Waltz / "May Each Day" Jive / "Bad, Bad Leroy Brown" | 9 9 | 9 8 | 9 9 | Safe |
| 9 Semi-finals | Quickstep / "Walk Like an Egyptian" Cha-Cha-Cha / "She's a Lady" | 10 10 | 10 10 | 10 10 | Safe |
| 10 Finals | Paso Doble / "España Cani" Freestyle / "Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)" Mambo / "Maracaibo Oriental" | 10 9 10 | 9 8 10 | 10 9 10 | Third Place |
Ali hosted the revival ofAmerican Gladiators alongsideHulk Hogan. The show premiered in January 2008.[40] Ali and the cast ofAmerican Gladiators appeared on theNBC showCelebrity Family Feud (Roker) in an episode that aired on July 8, 2008.[41] Ali joined the CBS team as a contributing correspondent onThe Early Show with her first appearance in early January 2008.[42]
She hostedThe N's Student Body, a reality show onThe N.[43] Ali also appeared in a 2007 episode ofYo Gabba Gabba!, titled "Train", in a brief dance number, and onLove That Girl, episode 3.4, "Fighting Shape".[44]
In 2012, Ali was picked to co-hostEveryday Health withEthan Zohn andJenna Morasca. The show aired onABC Saturday mornings and profiled everyday people living with health issues, who aspired to not let their issues keep them from helping others or doing extraordinary things.[45] The show lasted for one season. Also in 2012, Ali appeared in aKohl's commercial with a tag line, "I box to win; I shop to win.".[46] Ali was a contestant on theNBC celebrity reality competition series calledStars Earn Stripes from August 2012 to September 2012.[47]
On February 4, 2013, Ali appeared on the NBC reality series,The Biggest Loser in the episode "Lead By Example". In the episode, she boxed alongsideDolvett Quince's team, consisting of Jackson Carter, Joe Ostaszewski and Francelina Morillo. In March 2013, Ali started appearing as a co-host on multiple episodes of theE! talk show seriesFashion Police filling in forGiuliana Rancic, who was on maternity leave. In May 2013, Ali once again filled in for Rancic, who had other commitments and was unable to attend the show.
In May 2014, Ali participated in an episode ofCelebrity Wife Swap. She swapped places with singerAngie Stone and tried to instill healthier habits on the family. In April 2013, Ali participated in two episodes ofChopped: All Stars, making it to the final round, competing for a favorite charity.[48] In September 2013, Ali began hostingAll In with Laila Ali, a new show in the CBS Saturday morning lineup "CBS Dream Team". The following year, she began hostingLate Night Chef Fight on the cable networkFYI. In 2014, she appeared in the filmFalcon Rising. She was a participant ofThe New Celebrity Apprentice (also known asThe Apprentice 15 andThe Celebrity Apprentice 8) but terminated after 11th task.[49]
Since 2017, Ali has been the host of the DIY seriesHome Made Simple on theOprah Winfrey Network.[50]
In 2019, Ali participated inthe second season ofThe Masked Singer as "Panda". She was eliminated at the end of her episode. Before her official unmasking, Panda was jokingly revealed to beHomer Simpson in a promotion forThe Simpsons, another primetime FOX series.
In 2020, Ali voiced herself in theScooby-Doo and Guess Who? episode "The Crown Jewel of Boxing."
In 2002, she wrote (with co-authorDavid Ritz) the bookReach! Finding Strength, Spirit, and Personal Power.[51] In this book, she confides that she felt isolated at times because of her father's fame. Ali has also spent some time in jail, and describes her arrests and the physical abuse she experienced in jail.[52] Ali married Johnny "Yahya" McClain on August 27, 2000. McClain became Ali's manager and helped guide her career. In late 2005, Ali and McClain divorced and McClain quit managing Ali.[53]
On July 23, 2007, Ali married formerNFL playerCurtis Conway in Los Angeles. They have two children together: a son born in August 2008,[54] and a daughter born in April 2011.[55][56] Ali is the stepmother of Conway's three children.[57] Professional wrestling legendHulk Hogan credits Ali with saving his life by telephoning him when he was depressed and suicidal.[58] Ali is the sister-in-law of professional mixed martial artistKevin Casey, who is married to her sister Hana.[59]
Interview with Laila Ali about hostingEveryday Health TV
| Preceded by | 2nd IWBF WorldSuper Middleweight Champion November 8, 2002 – 2007 | Current holder |
| 2ndWIBA World Super Middleweight Champion November 8, 2002 – 2007 | Vacant Title next held by Natascha Ragosina | |
| New title | 1stWBCFemale World Super Middleweight Champion November 11, 2006 – 2007 | |
| Preceded by | Host ofAmerican Gladiators 2008–2009 With:Hulk Hogan | Vacant |
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Artists | |
| Other | |
