Muhammad Ali’s grandson, Biaggio Ali Walsh, set to make pro MMA debut TONIGHT in Atlanta

The grandson of Muhammad Ali will fight in Atlanta Friday night as he looks to take the next step in his burgeoning MMA career.

Biaggio Ali Walsh, whose mother Rasheda Ali was Ali’s daughter, will fight Travell Miller on the Professional Fighters League card.

Walsh enters the fight with an amateur record of 3-1 – and of course a big name – but isn’t rushing his next step.

‘Honestly, I don’t think I’m that close,’ he told TMZ Sports in April.

‘I think I need at least two or three more good wins under my belt and then I think I’ll be ready to go pro.’

Biaggio Ali Walsh celebrates after defeating Tom Graesser during 2022 PFL Championships

Walsh grew up with a famous grandfather and has gotten into the fighting business as well

Unlike his legendary grandfather and his brother Nico, who’s also a boxer, Walsh chose a different type of fighting.

‘I was just more attracted to MMA,’ Biaggio told The Sporting News. ‘I actually never thought about boxing. I obviously grew up in a boxing family, watching the sport. But I became a fan of MMA and the UFC when I was a freshman in high school. 

‘It attracted my eyes more. I really fell in love with the idea that multiple martial arts play a part in a fight. That you don’t need to just punch someone, but you can kick someone in the leg, kick them in the head, use spinning elbows, take people down, and wrestle. You could do multiple things, have weapons, and options for those weapons.’

Before his career as a fighter, Walsh played college football at UNLV and currently works as a nightclub security guard to make some extra money.

But while he’s taken a different fighting path than his famous grandfather, he of course sees the former heavyweight world champion as a role model.

‘He’s an inspiration to millions of people in the world, including myself,’ he told CNN this week.

Muhammad Ali is seen with a young Biaggio Ali Walsh in an undated photo

‘I don’t think that often you get an icon as a relative… he’s been a superhero to me since I was a little kid.’

Of course, having a famous bloodline comes with its negatives as well. 

‘I’m always going to have a target on my back,’ Biaggio told The Sporting News.

‘My brother’s a pro boxer, he’s always going to have a target on his back. Just us being who we are at birth is pressure. I’ve been used to haters since I was a freshman in high school. It’s always been a comparison between me and my grandfather, even when I played football, a completely different sport. ‘Oh, you’re the starting running back because you’re Muhammad Ali’s grandson.”

Walsh lost his first fight by submission but is undefeated since.