‘Everyone wants to knock out an Ali,’ says the grandson of ‘The Greatest’

When you are the grandson of Muhammad Ali, they are out to get you. In sparring, in contests, boxers want to make a point when they lay their gloves on you.

Nico Ali Walsh has not been mollycoddled as a fighter just because his grandfather was the legendary Muhammad Ali. Quite the reverse.

“My first sparring match ever I got totally beat up because they knew who I was. I never said who I was. Word travels somehow and it’s quick,” Ali Walsh told Sky Sports.

“Everyone wants to knock out an Ali. So I felt that, like I said, my first time ever sparring in a boxing gym. I felt that, so I’m used to it at this point.

“Everyone I face, especially in a professional ring, I face the best versions of themselves. Every one of my opponents so far, I’ve seen their tape before the fight and then I watch their tape in my fight after we fight. I’m like that’s their best version of themselves.