Not Wanting to ‘Embarrass’ Her Family, Muhammad Ali’s Daughter Laila Ali Kept This Secret for 6 Months: ‘Without Anyone Knowing, It Was…’

In a career of eight years, Laila Ali became the WIBA World Super Middleweight and WBC World Super Middleweight champion in boxing. Ali, who followed in her father’s footsteps, but herself played the role of a guide and a mentor to her career for a significant part of her life, once opened up about Muhammad Ali trying to persuade her out of boxing. Initially, both Muhammad and Laila Ali were concerned with the reputation of their family and Laila’s mental health being affected by boxing.

Laila Ali trained in secrecy

Laila Ali started training in secrecy, hidden from her father’s eyes. At a certain point, when Muhammad Ali discovered his daughter’s inclination towards boxing, he even discouraged her from pursuing her dream. However, Laila stood her ground. She had thought it through and was mentally prepared to bear the burden that boxing was going to bring.

In an interview with Rich Roll, Ali revealed by saying, “At a certain point, I saw him saying, I remember he told me not to box. You know, at first, he tried to talk me out of it indirectly. ‘Cause I kind of started in secrecy. Like I had to figure out for myself – Is this what I really want to do? I understood everything that was going to come with it. But I was like, ‘let me get in the gym [and] see if I even have the talent because I don’t want to embarrass myself, I don’t want to embarrass my family.”

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When Muhammad Ali tried to scare his daughter by picturing the big scene

For six months, Laila Ali trained in secrecy. She had the excuse of losing weight that covered her journey to the gym. “I trained for six months without anyone knowing. It was kind of like ‘I’m just going to go lose some weight, workout’. But I knew what my goal was,” said Ali. However, the news finally reached Muhammad Ali. Once it did, Muhammad painted the bigger picture for Laila Ali. He cautioned her about the attention and pressure she would receive due to boxing.

However, Laila Ali was determined to chase her dream in the boxing ring. “I’m ready to deal with that. I’ve thought that through. Well, you’ve [Muhammad Ali] been knocked down and you did what you did,” she’d replied by saying. Ali went on to hold two distinct titles in her division of pro boxing. Certainly, she made her family proud.

Read More – Forced to Keep Her ‘Door Closed!’ Laila Ali’s Mother Veronica Porsche “Didn’t Feel Safe” Living With Muhammad Ali

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