Biaggio Ali Walsh, the grandson of the legendary boxer Muhammad Ali, secured a dominant victory in his latest MMA bout last Friday against Joel Lopez at the PFL's 2023 World Championships in Washington, DC.
Competing in his fifth PFL appearance, Ali Walsh displayed a strong start, aiming for a quick knockout. He aggressively pressed forward, cornering Lopez against the cage to unleash a barrage of punches.
Despite enduring substantial strikes, Lopez displayed resilience. He occasionally used his reach to counter with jabs. Nevertheless, Ali Walsh's offensive persistence eventually created an opening for a fight-ending right hook.
The right hook staggered Lopez. As Lopez stumbled, he absorbed a subsequent left, causing him to fall face-first onto the canvas. The referee intervened at 1:24 in the second round to stop the fight.
Following the win, Ali Walsh said he dedicated his performance to those suffering in Palestine.
"I fought for all of my brothers and sisters who are suffering every day in Palestine. I fought for all of the children who have been taken from their parents and all of the parents who have been taken from their children," said Ali Walsh.
Professional transition
The grandson of the boxing legend made his PFL debut a year ago — a 45-second knockout against Tom Graesser at the 2022 World Championship. Following this, Ali Walsh secured victories in three other bouts within four months, knocking out Isaiah Figueroa, Travell Miller, and Ed Davis.
Training alongside UFC champion Sean Strickland at Xtreme Couture in Las Vegas, Ali Walsh is eyeing a transition to professional status next year, having compiled a commendable amateur record of 6-1.
"I'm super blessed and grateful. I don't know, I'll sit down with my coach and see what happens. But I'll definitely announce soon, so everybody will know," Ali Walsh said.
"I think I'm ready to turn professional, but I want mutual understanding with my coaches. I want to pick their brains and see what they think, then I will make a decision. Right now it's all about experience. I think I was a little bit calmer in this fight. The more you do it, the more you get to learn."
While many anticipated Ali Walsh would follow in his legendary grandfather's footsteps in boxing, Ali Walsh picked MMA. He explained why he had decided to skip boxing, unlike his brother Nico Ali Walsh and aunt Laila Ali, who retired in 2007 with a 24-0 record.
"I actually went straight into MMA right after playing Division 1 college football," he said.
"MMA drew me in. I loved the fact that you could use multiple tools to win a fight, I love that there's multiple martial arts that can play a part in a fight. That idea alone is what brought me to MMA."
In a 2021 interview, Nico mentioned the difficulty of hiding his lineage. Despite efforts, people would inevitably discover, leading to increased attempts by opponents to harm him and intensifying efforts to knock him out.
Ali Walsh, who had similar experiences during childhood, expects it to get more intense as he climbs the global MMA ranks.
"There is so much going on in my mind right now. I'm still an amateur so I'm still getting used to just everything. To get this kind of experience as an amateur is insane," he said.
