Son-in-law fights in UFC bout a day after Ali’s death

INGLEWOOD, Calif. >> Muhammad Ali’s son-in-law fought to a majority draw in a UFC bout Saturday night, one day after Ali’s death.

Kevin Casey, a veteran middleweight mixed martial artist, fought Elvis Mutapcic on the undercard of UFC 199 at the Forum.

“It’s a lot to go through before a fight,” Casey said to the crowd immediately afterward. “But thank you guys for the support, and God bless my family.”

The 34-year-old Casey is married to Hana Ali, the daughter of Ali and his third wife, Veronica Porsche. Hana Ali is the older sister of boxer Laila Ali. Muhammad Ali was married four times and had seven children.

Muhammad Ali also fought at the Forum, beating Ken Norton by split decision in their second meeting in September 1973. Ali got that redemptive victory six months after taking his second career loss when Norton broke Ali’s jaw in their first bout in San Diego.

Casey is a native of Inglewood who has been a professional fighter for nine years, the past two in the UFC. He has a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu.

Casey looked sharp at times in a grinding bout with Mutapcic, an Iowa-based fighter in his second UFC fight. Casey landed several big shots and gained ground control in the early rounds, but he spent the final minute pinned to the canvas and desperately blocking Mutapcic’s blows.

One judge apiece scored the bout 29-28 for each fighter, and a third judged it 28-28.

While Casey’s post-fight comments were brief, Mutapcic dedicated his performance to Ali’s memory.

“I knew (Casey) was going to be motivated,” Mutapcic said. “Muhammad Ali is the greatest of all time, and that’s his father-in-law. I feel like Kevin had a little more to prove because he married into the family and he was going to want to make a statement.”