The sport of boxing comes down as a lineage in the Ali family as Nico Ali Walsh, grandson of the one and only Muhammad Ali has kickstarted his professional career with a victory.
The son of Muhammad Ali’s daughter Rasheda Ali Walsh and Robert Walsh, Nico made his first appearance in the squared circle against Jordan Weeks via a first round TKO on Saturday.
The 21-year-old, who fights in the middleweight division, inked a deal with Bob Arum’s Top Rank Boxing back in June before his pro debut against Weeks, which took place in Oklahoma.
Ali Walsh donned his grandfather’s trunks in the fight and dominated his opponent, knocking him down halfway into the first round before the referee stepped in to stop the bout at the 1:49 mark, awarding a technical knockout win to Ali Walsh.
“Obviously my grandfather, I’ve been thinking of him so much. I miss him. It’s been an emotional journey,” Ali Walsh said in an interview with ESPN after the fight, “I think me and him [Weeks] made a little bit of history tonight. This lived up completely to my expectations.”
Nicknamed ‘The Greatest’, Muhammad Ali has been touted by many as the best to ever grace the sport. The former world heavyweight champion suffered from Parkinson’s syndrome in later life and passed away on 3rd June 2016.
The boxing trunks, which Ali gifted to his grandson Ali Walsh, will always remain a prized possession for the middleweight, although he made it clear that going ahead in his career, he will never wear those trunks again.
“It seems like a lot of pressure; to me, it’s just my grandfather,” Ali Walsh went on, “He’s the greatest fighter who ever lived – maybe the greatest person.”
