Family denies Ali near death

Muhammad Ali’s family is denying reports that the legendary boxer is near death.

According to the Courier-Journal of Louisville, the family posted on Twitter a photo of Ali wearing a Baltimore Ravens jersey as he prepared to watch the Super Bowl. Family spokesman Bob Gunnell told the Courier-Journal that Ali was at home in Phoenix with his wife, Lonnie.

“He looks great,” Gunnell said. “He’s having a Super Bowl party.”

Reports that Ali is gravely ill were published over the weekend by two British newspapers — The Sun and The Daily Mail, which quoted Ali’s brother, Rahman Ali, as saying: “It could be months, it could be days. I don’t know if he’ll last the summer. He’s in God’s hands.”

Ali, 71, suffers from Parkinson’s disease. His archrival, Joe Frazier, whom Ali fought in three epic bouts, died in 2011.