Page 1 of 1
Was Laila Ali Any Good?
Posted: 27 May 2026, 03:04
by Taansend
I remember her boxing but women boxing wasn't that big a deal back then. There was often one female bout on big cards but not many took notice.
But I think her record was 24(21)-0 which is really bloody impressive for anyone who's not from the Balkans.
But was she any good?
Re: Was Laila Ali Any Good?
Posted: 27 May 2026, 04:08
by gilgamesh
Yes
Re: Was Laila Ali Any Good?
Posted: 27 May 2026, 04:10
by Taansend
Where would you rate her in all time female boxers?
Re: Was Laila Ali Any Good?
Posted: 27 May 2026, 04:14
by gilgamesh
Taansend wrote: ↑27 May 2026, 04:10
Where would you rate her in all time female boxers?
No worse than Top 5. She's one of the few that stood out to me as "This girl can actually fight a bit"
It's rare that I come out of a Women's Boxing match thinking that.
Re: Was Laila Ali Any Good?
Posted: 27 May 2026, 04:20
by Taansend
gilgamesh wrote: ↑27 May 2026, 04:14
No worse than Top 5. She's one of the few that stood out to me as "This girl can actually fight a bit"
It's rare that I come out of a Women's Boxing match thinking that.
Cheers.
I remember her boxing but I don't know if I saw her fight.
I was working on cruise ships for most of her career so only saw the really big fights back then (reading about the rest).
I might have a delve into her career. My earliest boxing memory is her dad v Foreman before she was even born.
Re: Was Laila Ali Any Good?
Posted: 27 May 2026, 04:59
by gilgamesh
Taansend wrote: ↑27 May 2026, 04:20
gilgamesh wrote: ↑27 May 2026, 04:14
No worse than Top 5. She's one of the few that stood out to me as "This girl can actually fight a bit"
It's rare that I come out of a Women's Boxing match thinking that.
Cheers.
I remember her boxing but I don't know if I saw her fight.
I was working on cruise ships for most of her career so only saw the really big fights back then (reading about the rest).
I might have a delve into her career. My earliest boxing memory is her dad v Foreman before she was even born.
Her fight Frazier's Daughter was actually a pretty fun fight, and a decent little addition to the Ali-Frazier Family rivalry.
Nothing like the fights between the Dad's obviously, but a nice little scrap just the same.
Re: Was Laila Ali Any Good?
Posted: 27 May 2026, 12:25
by goose 5
I've only seen 2 female bouts ever, one involved Ali. She was good.
Re: Was Laila Ali Any Good?
Posted: 05 Jun 2026, 05:21
by Ruthless-RKO
Unfortunately, she came way before women's boxing actually picked up.
she could box though,
Re: Was Laila Ali Any Good?
Posted: 08 Jun 2026, 12:58
by tiny_acres
Ruthless-RKO wrote: ↑05 Jun 2026, 05:21
Unfortunately, she came way before women's boxing actually picked up.
she could box though,
Yes she came way before womens boxing had as many participants.
So it is hard to tell how good she really would be in todays sport
Re: Was Laila Ali Any Good?
Posted: 09 Jun 2026, 08:28
by MPW
tiny_acres wrote: ↑08 Jun 2026, 12:58
Ruthless-RKO wrote: ↑05 Jun 2026, 05:21
Unfortunately, she came way before women's boxing actually picked up.
she could box though,
Yes she came way before womens boxing had as many participants.
So it is hard to tell how good she really would be in todays sport
I agree that it is difficult to accurately gauge - guess? - how good she would be in this era, although I think she would be just as successful in the ring and operate with more fanfare. In my opinion, most woman's weight divisions are still pretty thin on talent these days.
Re: Was Laila Ali Any Good?
Posted: 10 Jun 2026, 04:36
by gilgamesh
MPW wrote: ↑09 Jun 2026, 08:28
tiny_acres wrote: ↑08 Jun 2026, 12:58
Ruthless-RKO wrote: ↑05 Jun 2026, 05:21
Unfortunately, she came way before women's boxing actually picked up.
she could box though,
Yes she came way before womens boxing had as many participants.
So it is hard to tell how good she really would be in todays sport
I agree that it is difficult to accurately gauge - guess? - how good she would be in this era, although I think she would be just as successful in the ring and operate with more fanfare. In my opinion, most woman's weight divisions are still pretty thin on talent these days.
Especially the bigger ones, and Laila was 160 pounds even at her lightest I believe. If I recall she competed at 160 and 168 so she's pretty much the same size as Shields. A little taller too I believe, though I'm not 100% on that.