Burton boxes Laila Ali Nov. 11
By CARL HENNELL
The Daily Inter Lake
A Kalispell kid is going toe-to-toe with the blood of Muhammad Ali in the boxing ring.
That's right, it's official. Kalispell's Shelley Burton is fighting Laili Ali on Nov. 11.
As if the namesake wasn't enough for Burton's bout, the fight takes place in New York City's Madison Square Garden.
As if the namesake and venue weren't enough, the Burton-Ali fight is an undercard bout for the heavyweight championship of the world between Wladimir Klitschko and Calvin Brock.
Whoa.
"This is the opportunity of a lifetime and what I have trained my entire career for," Burton said.
With Ali holding the WBC super middleweight world championship belt, Burton's fight is the second world title fight of the night next to Klitschko.
The fight will be Ali's first appearance in the Madison Square Garden. Her father fought eight epic battles in the arena. And now the New York City media is saying the Ali name will be the marquee name at the Mecca of Boxing.
Burton carries the world's No. 3 ranking into the fight.
"It is great to be fighting at Madison Square Garden and I respect the fact that Shelley stepped up to the plate and accepted the fight as soon as it was offered to her," Ali said. "That tells me she is confident that she can win and understands what the true prize will be. I look forward to an exciting fight."
Ali brings a record of 22-0 into the fight with 19 knockouts. She fights out of Los Angeles and will be trained by Floyd Mayweather Sr. for the 168-pound WBC title defense.
Burton, who trains in Las Vegas under Butch Gottlieb, has an 8-2 record.
"We are very excited to have someone of Laila's caliber as the co-feature of this promotion", said Tom Loeffler of K2 Promotions. "She compliments Wladimir perfectly; Laila is the most marketable and best female fighter in the world and Wladimir is the most marketable and best heavyweight in the world. It has been 35 years since Muhammad Ali fought Joe Frazier in the most historic fight in Madison Square Garden history."