Laila Ali: I Never Pictured Myself Getting Knocked Down.After she had knocking Arcand to the canvas 15 seconds into the fight, Laila Ali finished off her opponent with a straight right to the head in the first round which lasted only 1 minute and 15 seconds. In what she described at that point in her career as by far, my toughest fight, Ali stopped Karen Bill in the third round on the 8th April 2000 in Detroit. Clearly the more stylish boxer, Ali landed a series of right hands in the first round. However, Bill connected with a solid right just prior to the bell that made Laila Ali realise that she was in for a real fight for the first time in her brief career. At that point became very clear early in the second round when a hard right from Karen Bill knocked Laila Ali to the canvas. Laila Ali said. I was trying something I had been working on in the gym. I was not boxing, I was standing there, and thinking about doing something. That was when I got dropped. I never pictured myself getting knocked down. The third round was a slugging feast with both women punching furiously. the referee stepped in and stopped the bout in favour of Laila Ali with 1minute, 40seconds remaining in the round.
 Feel Comfortable in Her Father's Shadow Following the knockout, Laila Ali struck a pose reminiscent of her father when he fought and knockout big bad Sonny Liston, Laila Ali stood over her stunned opponent with her fist cocked with a scowl on her face. She is quite comfortable living from boxing in her father's shadow. My dad is the most famous man in the world, Laila Ali said. My dad is the greatest boxer of all time, and I am his very proud daughter. In her second professional bout, Laila Ali scored a fourth round technical knockout over Shadina Pennybaker on the 10th of November, 1999, in Chester, W.Va. Laila Ali bloodied Pennybaker's lip and forced a standing eight count in the fourth when she knocked her foe's mouthpiece out. A flurry of combinations sent Pennybaker reeling into a corner and produced a stoppage that created waves of protest from her corner. Laila Ali taunted and talked to her opponent, and shook her head when Pennybaker landed a decent punch during the bout. Ali vs. Frazier in Chapter IV of the Ali-Frazier Fight Saga On 8th June 2001, the fight both women had been looking forward to for years finally came to fruition when Laila Ali and Janet Frazier faced each other at the Turning Stone Casino. Following eight rounds of furious action before a sell-out crowd of 8,000, Laila Ali won by majority decision in an eight-rounder. In her next fight on the 23rd of August 2003, Ali took on Martin in Biloxi. Five years after watching a Martin fight on TV and deciding to follow in her father's footsteps, the two lady warriors collided in the ring. Billed as Who's the greatest?, Laila Ali captured the fictional title as she battered Martin in their IBA super middleweight title bout. Laila Ali easily won all four rounds and put Martin on the canvas twice, including the fight-stopper in the fourth round. Martin could not handle Laila Ali's speed, power and sharp shooting combinations. Laila Ali defended her IBA crown against Sheree Eplion on the 17th of July 2004, in Bowie, Ind. Ali dropped Eplion twice in the third round and two more times in the fourth before the referee stopped the punishment. |
Like Father, Like DaughterOn the 30th of July 2004 Laila Ali dominated Monica Nunez en route to a ninth round stoppage. Nunez's corner threw in the white towel after 42 seconds into the ninth round of their world title fight. Laila Ali like her famous dad is quite a big star and she is not just an ordinary girl off the cuff who took up boxing as a living. She is an exceptionally good writer. But how much longer will Laila Ali remain in boxing. She's a woman with loads of talent. Already she has beaten all comers in the women boxing arena plus she holds three world titles. She has 19 Wins, 0 Loss, 16 Knockouts since began boxing in 1999. The highly anticipated Laila Ali vs. Ann Wolfe is waiting in the wings for a long awaited match between these two in 2005. Like Father, Like Daughter. | |
