SAN DIEGO, CA - JULY 15: (L-R) Kevin Casey circles Ildemar Alcantara of Brazil in their middleweight bout during the UFC event at the Valley View Casino Center on July 15, 2015 in San Diego, California. (Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images)
LOS ANGELES --- Kevin Casey's father-in-law, boxing great and civil-rights leader Muhammad Ali, died Friday after a decades-long battle with Parkinson's disease but the UFC middleweight will still fight on Saturday. UFC officials told FOX Sports that Casey is ready to fight at the L.A. Forum on the UFC 199 undercard.
Casey is set to face Elvis Mutapcic on the UFC Fight Pass prelims. Casey is married to Hana Ali, a daughter of Ali.
On Friday night Casey posted a photo of he and his father-in-law. Earlier this year he shared warm memories of his first family Thanksgiving with Ali.
"It was this unbelievable feeling," Casey told Thomas Gerbasi.
"It was hard to even look directly at him. I literally felt the energy coming off of him."
Casey clearly had a great deal of respect and love for his wife's father, so it can't be easy for him to fight the day after Ali's passing. Still, as Ali himself knew so well, the life of a professional fighter can be cruel.
Casey's wife Hana Ali also posted a statement Saturday morning. "Our hearts are literally hurting," she wrote.
"But we are so happy daddy is free, now ... We all tried to stay strong and whispered in his ear, 'You can go now. We will be okay. We love you. Thank you. You can go back to God now.'"
A memorial is being planned for Wednesday in Ali's hometown of Louisville, KY.
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