"That's really all I needed" - Nico Ali Walsh says Muhammad Ali encouraged him to pursue boxing when his mother did not 

Muhammad Ali's grandson Nico Ali Walsh has revealed that he pursued boxing because his grandfather encouraged him to do so. In a podcast with Brian Davis, better known as 'True Geordie', Nico Ali Walsh said:

"Like my mom didn't want me to box, obviously, because she's my mom. And I would say the women in my family didn't want to see me getting hurt... but the main person in my family who encouraged me to box and actually pushed me towards it was my grandfather [Muhammad Ali] and that's all I needed. His blessing, and I said, 'okay, this is what I'm gonna do'."

Watch the full podcast below:

Nico Ali Walsh recently added another win to his boxing resume and moved to 2-0 after defeating James Westley II. The 21-year-old, with the blood of 'The Greatest' flowing through his veins, has scored two knockouts in his two fights.

Ali Walsh's mother, and Muhammad Ali's daughter, Rasheda Ali, was in attendance, emotionally cheering for her son at ringside.

Nico Ali Walsh is guided by veteran boxing trainer SugarHill Steward. Steward also trained 'The Gypsy King' Tyson Fury to a knockout victory over Deontay Wilder in their heavyweight trilogy fight.

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Nico Ali Walsh remembered his grandfather Muhammad Ali after his emotional debut win

Needless to say, after winning his first pro fight, Ali Walsh was asked about how he felt following his grandfather's footsteps into the squared circle. In his post-fight interview, Walsh said:

"It's very emotional, I mean it's been an emotional journey this whole ride... Obviously my grandfather [Muhammad Ali], I've been thinking about him so much. I miss him and it's just an emotional journey..."

Watch the post-fight interview below:

Nico Ali Walsh, the middleweight who wore the 50-year old shorts gifted to him by 'The Greatest' himself, had an extremely impressive first outing in the world of professional boxing.

The 21-year old secured a TKO victory over Jordan Weeks in his pro-boxing debut. The fight was stopped less than two minutes into the first round soon after Ali Walsh knocked Weeks down with a huge right hand.