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Ali Salaam, father and trainer of former WBC super welterweight champion Tony Harrison, has died of coronavirus at age 59.
Salaam is the second major boxing figure to be taken in recent days, as former referee Eddie Cotton passed away this past Friday.
The son of 94-fight veteran Henry Hank, Salaam boxed professionally from 1984 to 1989, amassing an 11-7 (5 KO) record before hanging up the gloves. Under his tutelage, Harrison short-circuited a planned Jermell Charlo-Jarrett Hurd unification by upsetting the former in 2018, and though “Super Bad” would fall in their rematch a year later, he turned in a terrific performance against a man considered the cream of the crop at 154 pounds.
We wish Harrison and his family the best in these difficult times.