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Laila Ali has been pretty quiet following the death of her father, sports legend Muhammad Ali, over the weekend.

The most famous kid of the boxing champ finally broke her silence during her appearance on The TODAY Show on Monday, during which she revealed she’s been mentally preparing for the passing death of her ailing dad, who struggled with Parkinson’s disease. Laila said:

“It was time for him to go. I know he’s in a better place now and he’s talking again and moving again and doing all the things that he couldn’t do in his body,” Ali said. “I’m happy for that even though I will miss him deeply.”

The boxing champ also gave a tribute to her late father on Good Morning America, saying:

“I can say that I’m obviously really sad, but I’ve been sad for a long time just watching my father struggling with Parkinson’s disease. You know, you hold your head up and you say, ‘Yeah, he’s doing great,’ but I felt like [Muhammad] was trapped inside of his body. So I have comfort knowing that he’s not suffering anymore.”

The mom of two revealed her son shows signs of continuing his grandfather’s legacy.

My son is a spitting image of my father when he was young and he has so many of his same similar characteristics and qualities. [Muhammad is] definitely going to live on through him. He’s learning more and more as he gets older how special papa actually was,” she said.

Muhammad Ali’s body has been returned to his hometown of Louisville, Kentucky, where he will be buried later this week.

SOURCE: PEOPLE, Telegraph | PHOTO CREDIT: Twitter, Getty 

Muhammad Ali’s Life in Pictures
Muhammad Ali. Cassius Clay. 1968
20 photos