Great championship boxing on April 14th: Kaliesha West v. Claudia Andrea Lopez!

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>>>UPDATE>>>

Kaliesha West retained her title through ten rounds of fighting against challenger Claudia Andrea Lopez.  West won by majority decision with the judges scoring the bout 98-92, 98-92, 95-95.  Having live tweeted the bout, it is really hard to see how the third judge could have scored it a draw.  West was firmly in control, though the fight was tough and Lopez’s southpaw style took some getting used to.  Kaliesha has been quoted as saying, “Lopez was a crafty veteran who was aggressive during the entire fight. Other boxers avoid her because she is a tough lefty, who has experience fighting good competition. She was what we expected and then some.”

The fight is now on YouTube (albeit in Spanish).  You be the judge!

 

Great championship boxing on April 14th: Kaliesha West v. Claudia Andrea Lopez.

The pride of California, Kaliesha “Wild Wild” West (14-1-3, 4-KOs), the current WBO Bantamweight Champion will be defending her well earned title against Argentina’s own Claudia Andrea “La Chica 10” Lopez (18-5-0, 4-KOs) at the Ernesto Ruffo Appel Municipal Gymnasium, located in Rosarito B.C. Mexico.

For those with access to Televisa, the 10-round, championship take-no-prisoners bout will air as part of their weekly boxing series “Sabados de Corona.” The fight card is presented by Box Latino, and is slated to be led by seven-time world champion, Mexico’s Erik “El Terrible” Morales.

West first won the WBO Bantamweight title in September of 2010 and will be offering her third WBO title defence.  Her last fight was in August 2011 when she won handily over Jessica Villafranca by unanimous decision.  This will be West’s third fight in Mexico – a place she is beginning to call home especially as there are excellent boxing opportunities for her there.

West’s opponent, Claudia Andrea Lopez has the reputation as a fierce competitor and is taking this fight after winning four straight bouts.  A champion in her own right, she is the current WBC Latino Super Bantamweight champion, however, her title will not be on the line in her fight on April 14th,

Boxing News 24 has quoted West’s father and coach Juan West as saying,  “I’ve done my research and Lopez is the type of fighter that managers avoid. She’s strong, left-handed, has a solid chin and she’s a champion. She’s had some close losses to highly rated fighters. This is an opportunity for Kaliesha to make a statement and take her game to another level. She is on a mission to gain the respect of the boxing community and to build a broader fan base by grabbing the attention of casual sports fans.”

For women’s boxing fight fans who happen to be in Mexico, tickets will be available at the Ernesto Ruffo Appel Municipal Gymnasium box office or by calling the offices of Bobby D. Presents at +1 (619) 420 8866. On fight night, the doors will open at 5pm, with the first fight starting at 6pm.

Women’s boxing: all eyes on Canada

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>>>UPDATE!!!

Congratulations to the Women’s Elite Continental Boxing Champions!!!

Alex Love-48kg (USA), Marlen Esparza-51kg (USA), Clelia Costa-54kg (Brazil), Tiara Brown-57kg (USA), Adriana Araujo-64kg (Brazil), Mikaela Mayer-64kg (USA), Miriam da Silva-69kg (Canada), Claressa Shields-75kg (USA), Franchon Crews-81kg (USA), Erika Cabrera-+81kg (Brazil)!!!

Women’s boxing: all eyes on Canada …

The Women’s Elite Continental Boxing Championships have been underway in Cornwall, Ontario since April 4th and will run through April 7th.  Amateur women’s boxing champions from as far away as Argentina and Brazil and including teams from Jamaica, Ecuador, Mexico, Honduras, Puerto Rico, the United States and Canada have been competing their hearts out.

The tournament has been a preview of the caliber of women’s boxing we can expect in next month’s world championships in China, and importantly, a preview of sorts of how women in the Olympic weight classes will fare.

More importantly, as women’s boxing fever begins to rise, it is offering people who are less familiar with the sport the opportunity to become “infected” by the incredible boxing skills these extraordinary women are  demonstrating night after night.

As always, it seems, women who box do so “wall-to-wall” with barely an opportunity to breathe, never mind allow the action to stop.   As Puerto Rico’s Tiffany Perez who lost a heartbreaker last night put it in an interview with a Canadian paper, “ Women’s boxing is important because women are always the underdogs and this makes them stronger and more determined.” Article link here.

Tonight’s finals will be no exception, pitting the best of that North and South America have to offer for the world to see.  Give yourself a treat and watch the bouts starting at 7:00 PM EST:  Go Fight Live TV

Bout Roster – Finals 7:00 PM EST

(48kg) RED-LOVE Alexandra USA v.  BLUE-CRUZ Claribel ARG
(51kg) RED-ESPARZA Marlen USA v. BLUE-MATOS Erica BRA
(54kg) RED-BENAVIDEZ Yanina ARG  v.  BLUE-COSTA Clelia BRA
(57kg) RED-SANCHEZ Leonela ARG  v. BLUE-BROWN Tiara USA
(60kg) RED-ARAUJO Adriana BRA v. BLUE-SANCHEZ Dayana ARG
(64kg) RED-SILVA Roselaine BRA v. BLUE-MAYER Mikaela USA
(69kg) RED-GITTENS Kimberly BAR v. BLUE-da SILVA Myriam CAN
(75kg) RED-SHIELDS Claressa USA v. BLUE-SPENCER Mary CAN
(81kg) RED BERGERON Maude CAN v. BLUE CREWS-Franchon USA
(+81kg) RED CABRERA Erika BRA v. BLUE-PEREZ Victoria USA


Huge middleweight championship bout: Christina Hammer v. Julie “Queen” Tshabalala

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>>>UPDATE>>> Christina Hammer retains her WBF Women’s Middleweight Title!

Christina Hammer improved her undefeated record to 12-0 by defeating Julie “Queen” Tshabalala by unanimous decision through ten rounds of boxing.  The much shorter Tshabalala was said to have fought well inside, however, Hammer proved to be overpowering through out the fight.

 

Huge middleweight championship bout: Christina Hammer v. Julie “Queen” Tshabalala

WBF Female middleweight champion, Christina Hammer, 21, is considered the number one women’s boxing middleweight fighting today. She will be putting it all on the line tonight in a championship bout at the Vodova Arena in Brno, Czech Republic.

WFB Middleweight Champion Christina Hammer, Credit: Eroll Popova

The naturalized German citizen by way of Kazakhstan, Hammer (11-0, 7-KOs) will be fighting her third title defense against South Africa’s own (4-1-1, 1-KO). Hailing from Johannesburg, Tshabalala is the current South African Middleweight champion and most recently defended her title against Lilian Molala WBF Female middleweight this past August 2011.

Hammer is known for her tough, saavy fighting style and last October, handily defeated Vashon Living (5-1-0). This begs the question as to whether Tshabalala has the experience to be competitive in the ring against Hammer, although she is known for her tenacity in the ring.

For those who want to see it, the fight will be streaming live beginning at 8:00 PM local time at the following link: www.bild.de

Loving boxing and my right shoulder …

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Loving boxing and my right shoulder …

Christina Cruz (l.) beats Florina Novac to take record sixth Golden Gloves title. Credit: Ken Goldenfield/NY Daily News

Aside from my absolute joy at the fact that Christina Cruz won her sixth (count ’em) New York Golden Gloves Championship (not to mention that she is the 2012 USA Boxing National Champion at 118 pounds!) boxing has definitely had the better of me lately.

And while I go to bed thinking about my left dig and wake up thinking of how to work in the left hook off the jab,  my body isn’t cooperating in fact it’s in downright rebellion what with a labral tear in my right shoulder socket (that’s along the top, a classic repetitive stress injury from banging) and supraspinatus tendinitis (yep, plus a rotator cuff injury)!

Ssssh…. Talk about the proverbial “bummer.”

To go back a step or two, I’ve had intermittent pain in my shoulder area since about Christmas, mostly when I’d throw a right cross and sometimes on the speed bag.  It wasn’t awful, but if I moved my right arm back, I yelped a definite “ow.”  I was easy on it and figuring to lighten the exercise load tried swimming. It turned out that didn’t work out well either as I could only swim using a Side Stroke because the overhand movements of the American Crawl stroke — and the lateral movements of the Breast Stroke caused even more ows than boxing.

The ouches seemed to subside and I thought, must be a trigger point or something because the discomfort was mostly felt in the back of my arm.  Still, it didn’t go away, and I began thinking it might be a rotator cuff injury which can be more serious.

Rotator cuff injuries up to and including actual tears involve the tendons and muscles outside the shoulder joint where the tendons attach the muscles to the humerus (arm) bone.

According to the Mayo Clinic, “A rotator cuff injury includes any type of irritation or damage to your rotator cuff muscles or tendons. Causes of a rotator cuff injury may include falling, lifting and repetitive arm activities — especially those done overhead, such as throwing a baseball or placing items on overhead shelves.”

In the case of boxing, the constant repetitive motion of throwing punches, not to mention, banging away, hard, on heavy bags, pads, not to mention sparring can certainly cause injuries.

With that in mind I headed over to an orthopedist at NYU/Hospital for Joint Diseases and within about five minutes, some “popping sounds” and several pushes on my right and left arms he was convinced I was suffering a rotator cuff problem and ordered up an MRI to be followed by physical therapy.

It was only after receiving the results from the MRI that it became clear that I had both a labral tear along the top of the labram — also called a SLAP tear (Superior Labrum Anterior-Posterior — aka top of the labram running from front to back), as well as tendinites of the supraspinatus tendon at the top of the shoulder.  In other words, “ouch.”

After talking it over with my doctor, we both agreed that a conservative approach was preferable, so the next will be physical therapy (tomorrow) with a focus on treatment, pain relief and muscle strengthening to give better support to the shoulder area.

Unfortunately, when it comes to SLAP tears, the alternatives after physical therapy can be rather bleak — as in arthroscopic surgery, though my doctor feels strongly that the physical therapy should do the trick, and with your indulgence I’ll likely write another piece about the physical therapy process once it gets going.

The real cautionary tale here is that if you shoulder is starting to “catch” when you pull your arm back, or if you find it aching to the point of an “ow”  after a work out, do get it checked out.  There are, it seems, a lot of things that can go wrong with the shoulder — and a good course of physical strengthening of the muscles in the area, as well as good warm-ups may mean the difference, especially if you are shall we say … older!

For some more information on rotator cuff injuries and SLAP injuries here are some links!

Medline Plus – Shoulder Injuries and Disorders (site has a lot of links for possible disorders)

WEBMD Shoulder Slap Tear (good general discussion)

Lenox Hill Hospital – Rotator Cuff Exercises (tips on strengthening)

Lenox Hill Hospital – Shoulder Pain (general disorders with links)

Two great upcoming women’s championship bouts: Santana v. Reile and Velez v. Castillo

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>>>Update>>>

Katy Castillo Wilson defeated Ada Velez to become the IBF Female Super Bantamweight title by majority decision: 97-93, 07-93 and 98-92.

Dahiana Santana defeated Stacey Reile for the IBF Female Featherweight title by majority decision: 98-90, 97-90 and 97-91.

Two great upcoming women’s championship bouts: Santana v. Reile and Velez v. Castillo!

Stacey Reile and Dahiana Santana, March 2011, Credit: Reuters/Juan Carlos Ulate

This will be war!  

We’re talking two huge IBF female championships that will be fought this coming Saturday, March 24th at the Palacio de Deportes in Santo Domingo in the Dominical Republic promoted by none other than Sampson Boxing.

Stacey Reile and Dahiana Santana, March 2011, Photo Credit: Reuters/Juan Carlos Ulate

Current IBF Female Featherweight Title Champion Dahiana Santana (21-6-0, 12-KOs) will be fighting her third rematch with challenger Stacey “Staylo” Reile (10-4-0, 4-KOs) who initially won the title against her in March of 2011 before losing the title to Santana in November 2011.  Their third meeting is much anticipated and should be a tough, tough fight.

Ada Velez, Credit: Chase Von

Fight Card for March 24, Katy Wilson Castillo (r), Photo: Orlando Ramos

The second female championship bout will be for the IBF Super Bantamweight Title pitting the hard hitting champion Ada Velez (20-3-3, 6-KO) against the home town favorite Katy Wilson Castillo (14-1-0, 9-KOs). Velez, best known for her bruising battles against Melinda Cooper.  Velez has also fought and won against Stacey Reile.

For a mash-up preview of Saturday night’s boxing card watch the junior featherweight bout between Ada Velez and Stacey Reile from February 2010 — (along with a Girlboxing shout out to YouTube!).

How many more people have to die before we stop?

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How many more people have to die before we stop?

Trayvon Martin's parents in New York City, Photo: John Minchillo/AP

The pain is etched on the faces of Tracy Martin and Sybrina Fulton.

Pain no parents should ever have to suffer.

Pain no one’s parents or friends or loved ones or fellow travelers should ever have to contend with at the hands of intolerance, bigotry and ignorance.

Trayvon Martin, AP Photo/Martin Family

The truth is I’m heartsick and angry and haunted by the senselessness of this young man’s death.  And for what?  Why does a young 17-year-old with nothing but promise ahead of him have to die?  What was so overwhelmingly fearful other than a perception of “otherness” that caused George Zimmerman to pull the trigger and snuff out this boy’s life?

And there’s the rub.

Trayvon Martin is a drop in the bucket of our daily diet of ridiculous death.  Just since his death on February 26th, we’ve lived through a free-for-all of senseless violence.  And if not for the color of someone’s skin or the shape of their hoodie, than for their religion or ethnicity or sexual orientation or gender or tribal allegiance or gang membership …. and the list goes on and on and on: our collective demonization of “otherness.”

A student being escorted from the Ozar Hatorah school in Toulouse on Monday after a horrific shooting. Photo: Jean-Philippe Arles/ReuterOur collective unabated demonization of the "other."

Here in America, it is in our daily diet of vitriol.

And yet it doesn’t stop here. Three days ago in France, a man opened fire in front of a Jewish school in Toulouse killing a religious teacher and three children, and leaving a 17-year-old boy in serious condition.

And today, if we comb the world’s papers we will find other instances of horror.

We will find that women have been killed for so-called “honor.”  We’ll learn that young men in Iraq have been tortured to death for wearing “emo” clothing.

The question is can we rise above our fears to say enough?

Can each of us rise up and shout down hatred and bigotry long enough to have it mean something?

I’d really had the hope that the long 20th Century of war upon war upon war would somehow liberate us enough to enter a period of tolerance.

Apparently I was wrong.

All that is truly left us is our ability to shout E-N-O-U-G-H.

 

 

 

Mia St. John and Mary Kom: Female Boxers in the news …

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Mia St. John and Mary Kom: Female Boxers in the news …

From barely a trickle of stories about women’s boxing, there is a fair amount of press — all over the world about women’s boxing.  Here are stories featuring American boxer Mia St. John and India’s great amateur Olympic hopeful Mary Kom!

Mia St. John has granted an exclusive interview to Jake Emen over at Proboxingfans.com on her upcoming June 19th battle against the great Christy Martin.  Here’s a smattering of the interview …

“You’ve been fighting professionally since 1997, so it’s been 15 years. How much longer will you continue to fight, and is there any way this is your last fight?

Mia: I have to fight Christy one more time after this! We have to do the rubber match! Other than that, I’m done. I’ve lived out dream and it was a hell of a ride.”

The article link is here.

India’s leading contender for Gold in the upcoming 2012 London Olympic Games — with a eye first on winning a berth to the 2012 Women’s World Championships this coming May in China is none other than Mary Kom.  The five time amateur champion has recently upped her weight class to 51 KG  in order to compete.  She is currently a participant in the 6th Asian Women’s Boxing Championships being held in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia where she has advanced to the quarter finals.

This recent piece entitled India’s Mary Kom keeps proving doubters wrong is particularly revealing of her struggles to become a world-class boxing champion and is well worth the read.  Here is a brief preview …

“When I started boxing, people laughed at me and said, ‘What can women do in boxing?’” she said. “I took it as a challenge. If men can do it why can’t women? And I became a world champion before my marriage.

“When I got married, they doubted if I can win again after marriage. I took it as the second challenge and proved myself.”

The article link is here.

India Today also has a story on Mary Kom entitled Boxing: Mary Kom off to a winning start about her quarterfinal win.

Early spring grumps …

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Early spring grumps …

Okay, I admit it.  I have a case of early spring grumps.  We’re talking ridiculous, right?  There it was 70+ degrees when I walked out of work yesterday and was I happy?  No.  I was decidedly grumpy.

Okay, it wasn’t terminal grumpiness or its cousin irascibility and certainly hasn’t drifted to chronic grumpiness, at least not yet, although the cat might think differently after getting soaked with the water sprayer this morning after waking me up at 5:00 AM, yet again.  I know, I know, I should love the little kitty and say, how cute as she scratches at the dresser with her paws to say, “wakey, wakey!” … but really, 5:00 AM?

That little discomfort aside I do admit to craving chocolate cake and bags of potato chips: two seriously never, ever eat again foods in my lexicon of things to eat and things not to eat.

Saying it, however, doesn’t mean I have to like it. And while I “get” that in the immortal words of Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca, “… the problems of three little people don’t amount to a hill of beans in this crazy world,”  aka, my larynx, my esophagus and my stomach, I still want to complain.

And that’s the rub.  The complaint thing.  Sometimes I just want to complain!  You know, the old, “why me?” or a personal favorite around my house, “it’s your fault.”

So, meanwhile, back in the real world, the antidote is, as always, those sixteen hard pounding rounds at Gleason’s Gym where lately, the workout has come to mean that space where I can truly say my two favorite chestnuts:  “its good to hit things” and “work it out on the bag.”

In the scheme of things, my out-of-sorts mein will right itself (say by the end of this post?), but the space for working things out will remain and whether it’s in my own head, on a walk where I pause just long enough to recognize that 70+ degrees in the middle of March is truly great (while forgetting the climate change thing that could get me to spiral backwards again), eating a truly delicious stalk of asparagus (of the fresh spring farmer’s market variety) or pounding on the double-ended bag, life really is a miraculous experience — even when the grumps get you down.

Women’s championship boxing weekend wrap-up 3/16-3/18/2012

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Women’s championship boxing weekend wrap-up 3/16-3/18/2012

Yescia Patricia Marcos (R) defeats Ana Julaton for the WBO Female Super Bantamweight Title. Credit: Alsurinforma.com

Yesica Patricia Marcos takes WBO Female Super Bantamweight Title

Yesica Patricia Marcos (19-6-0, 1-KO) defeated WBO Female Super Bantamweight title holder Ana Julaton (10-3-1, 1-KO) in a ten round decision at Teatro Griego Juan Pablo Segundo, San Martin, Mendoza, Argentina on March 16, 2012.  The bout was scored 98-92, 98-92 and 98-91 and included a second round knockdown of Marcos by Julaton.  Both fighters went toe-to-toe in an aggressive fight — Julaton fought Marcos’ close-in style rather than her usual outside fighting technique in the early going — and while Julaton’s team agreed that Marcos outfought Julaton, their was disagreement on how the bout was scored.

Marcos, a hometown favorite in her native Argentina is known for her busy close in fighting.  No word yet on whether there will be a rematch. You be the judge of the complete fight!

Alicia “Slick” Ashley retains her WBC Super Bantamweight Title!

Alicia Ashley land a right hand against challenger Maria Elena Villalobos on 3/17/2012 to retain her WBC Title, Photo: Alma Montiel

The pride of Brooklyn and Jamaica and Gleason’s own, Alicia “Slick” Ashley (18-9-1, 1-KO) retained her WBC Female Super Bantamweight title by soundly defeating Maria Elena Villalobos (12-6-1, 5-KO) by unanimous decision in their ten round bout held in Mexico City on March 17, 2012.  Villalobos who’d previously lost her WBO Female Super Bantamweight title to Ana Julaton this past September was no match for Ashley’s truly “slick” style.  With her win Ashley remains the oldest female world boxing champion.  Speaking after the fight, Ashley is quoted as saying “I am thrilled that I was able to retain my title in fine style and I really want to fight in Jamaica next.”

Alicia “Slick” Ashley Defending WBC Super Bantamweight Title against Maria Elena “The Rush” Villalobos on March 17, 2012

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>>> UPDATE >>>

AND THE WINNER IS … ALICIA “SLICK” ASHLEY, by decision.  The judges scored the bout 99-92, 98-92 and 99-91.

Alicia Ashley landing a right hand against challenger Maria Elena Villalobos on 3/17/2012 to retain her WBC Title, Photo: Alma Montiel


Alicia “Slick” Ashley Defending WBC Super Bantamweight Title against Maria Elena “The Rush” Villalobos on March 17, 2012

Brooklyn’s own Alicia “Slick” Ashley (17-9-1, 1-KO) and currently the oldest female world champion in boxing will be defending her WBC Super Bantamweight championship against challenger Maria Elena “The Rush” Villalobos (12-4-1, 5-KO) on March 17, 2012 in Mexico City, Mexico.

Alicia "Slick" Ashley training in Mexico for her March 17, 2012 WBC Superbantamweight Title Fight., Credit: Boxing de Gala

Renowned for her “Slick” boxing style, Ashley, a former dancer and kickboxer brings extraordinary boxing skills, agility and style to the ring with a southpaw’s propensity for  catching her opponents off-guard.  As a denizen of Gleason’s Gym in Dumbo, Brooklyn Ashley, 44,  not only trains with a dedication that runs rings around men and women half her age, but is also a talented trainer and coach in her own right, bringing her “Slick” brand of saavy boxing to fighters who have gone on to win titles in their own right.

Maria Elena "The Rush" Villalobos, Credit: Bob Cruz

Maria Elena “The Rush” Villalobos, 39, is also no stranger to the ring having successfully defended her WBC Silver Female Super Bantamweight Title since last July 2011.

While a skilled orthodox fighter, she has not fought the level of competition that Ashley has fought. Villalobos has been reported as stating that she will look to take Ashley with a KO.  She also hopes that her hometown advantage will give her the added impetus to take the fight.

Given Ashley’s skill and propensity to fight an outside/inside game, Villalobos will have her certainly have to work hard to catch a victory.

The fight is scheduled for ten rounds and will be Ashley’s first defense of her title since her decisive win over Christina Ruiz in July 2011 by decision.

Maria Elena Villalobos interview about her upcoming bout with Alicia Ashley from YouTube (in Spanish):

Waking in the dark …

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Waking in the dark …

Brooklyn Bridge at Night Brooklyn 1948 Gelatin Silver by Andreas Feininger

I had been getting used to seeing the bits of blue through the bedroom window as I woke up at six o’clock in the morning.  Reminders, along with the balmy-for-winter weather, that Spring would be coming soon enough.

Now with daylight savings time having hit the U.S. this morning, I had the trek in the dark from bedroom to bathroom to a quick glance in my daughter’s room before turning on the light in the living room.

I liken this early March hiccup to something akin to the Little Ice Age, not exactly a return to the somnambulance of winter, but not exactly spring either — knowing of course that I will feel differently at five o’clock in the afternoon when the glorious sunshine of what is forecasted to be a truly balmy winter’s day:  68 degrees, will throw out beams of warm decidedly Spring light onto me as I walk out into a truly magnificent brightness.

Happy (early) Spring!

Women’s boxing tonight: WBC & WBA Female Light Welterweight Championship in Argentina!

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>>>UPDATE>>>

Monica “La Gata” Silvina Acosta held on to her WBC Female Light Welterweight Title and picked up the WBA Female Light Welterweight Title last night after 10 full rounds of boxing.  She picked up the decision over a plucky Michelle Larissa Bonassoli with the judges scoring the bout 96-94, 97-93 and 98-92.  While La Gata won the bout handily, those at ringside thought the 98-92 score did not quite reflect the action in the bout.

Women’s boxing tonight: WBC & WBA Female Light Welterweight Championship in Argentina!

Monica Silvina Acosta fights for the WBC & WBA Light Welterweight Championship on March 9, 2012 in Argentina

In a co-Main Event bout, Argentina’s own Monica “La Gata” Silvina Acosta (15-0-2, 2-KOs) will be fighting Brazil’s own Michelle Larissa Bonassoli (10-5, 9-KOs) for the WBC Female Light Welterweight Title and WBA Female Light Welterweight Title tonight at the Polideportivo Municipal, General Conesa, Buenos Aires, Argentina.

The fight is promoted by Mario Arano and will be televised on Argentina Direct TV.

Both fighters are considered to be savvy dangerous fighters although La Gata has proven herself to be very successful since winning the WBC Female Light Welterweight title. Her last defense was back in September 2011 against Erin McGowan.  Michelle’s last fight was a year ago when she defeated Adriana Zanella with two knockdown’s at :51 into the first round.

Chances are the fight will be available on YouTube!

Engaging in the ring on International Women’s Day!

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Engaging in the ring on International Women’s Day!

I grew up in the sixties and well remember my father informing me at the age of 13 that since I was now “liberated” I could pay for my own lunch.

Bra Burning, Atlantic City 1968, Credit: Media Myth Alert

That was in the late 1960s and while I admit to some confusion when I watched images of college women burning their bras or heard about consciousness raising sessions where women would meet to talk about how to become “unoppressed,” I suppose I could say that I reaped some immediate benefits — well sort of …

When I was 17, I was literally chased around the desk by a lecherous office manager and subsequently fired for not being “friendly.” A woman at the unemployment office took pity on me and figured out how to “stick-it” to the company by giving me the unheard of sum of $75.00 per week for my troubles.

That was how my consciousness was raised: don’t get mad get even.

Doris Day and Rock Hudson, Lover Come Back, Credit: Leo Fuchs

With the blissful joys of late 1950s and early 1960s sex romps filling my head — those Doris Day and Rock Hudson gems which were “teaching” me how to get a man, you know, lie, cheat and don’t put out on the first, second, third or even fourth date, well a few kisses maybe but that was it — didn’t exactly prepare me for reaching my “womanhood” in the disco world of the early 1970s in NYC!

Not to mention, of course, that Rock Hudson was famously gay and Doris Day the victim of spousal abuse and a renowned animal rights activist beginning in the 1980s.

The point is we all change. Whether through “consciousness raising” or time, but when it comes to women, some things don’t seem to change.

We in the United States may assume ourselves to be “enlightened” when in comes to women’s rights — you know, we can drive, support our families, even box, and heck, there are more women graduating from architecture school than men these days so that’s equality, right?

Scratch that surface though and we find the political rhetoric of this year’s Republican campaign season attacking women’s health and birth control! Birth control?!?!? I mean really, what is up with that?!?!?

(Dare I mention that most women on birth control are married and that a good percentage take the pill for non-birth control reasons — despite what certain radio talk show hosts have stated!)

Women are also still assaulted in record numbers by spouses and boyfriends, trafficked for sex right here in the old US of A, and while women have made inroads in the Armed Forces, the “dark side” is the spate of sexual crimes against women — right smack dab in the middle of the theater of war where they proudly serve.

To my way of thinking, we are all in the ring all the time, duking it out for things like adequate child care for our children because let’s face it “choice” is not an option for most women — it’s work or starve — which brings up issues like maternity rights (nothing like leaving your 11 week old baby to go back to work, I know, I had to do it) and that old chestnut equity in pay (still!).

Ask ANY female boxer in the United States if she can earn a living as a fighter and she’ll give you a litany of jobs she has to have to “support” her professional boxing career. Oh, and then ask her about how much respect she receives for plying her trade … think Christy Martin who boxed in pink for years to seem more feminine and therefore a lot less threatening.

I could go on and on — but will end my rant by standing and raising my body into a huge cheer for Christy Martin and Mia St. John who will enter the ring of combat on June 19th for the WBC Super Welterweight World Championship.

To my mind this is the best antidote to feeling the blues about how much further women have to go: two f’n warriors giving it their all in a ring they claim as their own.

And at the end of the day, that’s all it’s about: what Virginia Wolfe famously coined, a place of one’s own to just be without all of the ugly crap that gets heaped on in piles pushing you down.

In the parlance of my childhood “rock on sisters!” — and have a great day!

Smackdowning down the boundaries of the ring: Women’s Boxing and MMA!

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Smackdowning down the boundaries of the ring: Women’s Boxing and MMA!

Ronda Rousey vs. Miescha Tate, March 3, 2012, Credit: Greg Bartram/US Presswire

Saturday night, Strikeforce aired a fabulous night of MMA bouts on Showtime that included Ronda Rousey’s (5-0) stunning take down of women’s bantamweight title holder Miesha Tate (12-2) with an armbar submission 4:27 into the first round.  In Rousey’s crowning as the new MMA bantamweight champion, heads are turning because of the high caliber of the effort both of these women put into the fight, but the “chops” they brought with them.  Rousey is a an Olympic Bronze Medalist in Judo, and Tate has been a sure-fire crowd pleaser since entering the ring.  Sarah Kaufman’s efforts against Alexis Davis were also hailed as “good” MMA.

So here’s the question: Where is women’s boxing in all of this?

Don’t get me wrong, it is FABULOUS to see MMA being promoted and aired as part of Showtime’s Strikeforce franchise and equally fabulous to read the positive press. David Casitlllo’s piece in The Bloody Elbow.com is a case in point, entitled Strikeforce Tate vs. Rousey Results: Why Women’s MMA Belongs In The Ring, includes the statement, “Rousey just “gets” MMA. There’s a brilliance to her game that reveals itself in the way she transitions. In understanding that each shift from one phase to the next is an opportunity. And that a takedown can be a sequence rather than a precession.”

What we are not seeing is the willingness of Showtime, HBO and ESPN to air these elite female fighters on their boxing shows.  It’s not as if the caliber of fighting isn’t there!  Flash back to the incredible displays of boxing prowess at the women’s Olympic Team Trials for one, but more importantly, take a look at the professional women who box their hearts out for a pittance, grateful for the opportunity to box at all nevermind a chance at a video stream.

Amanda "The Real Deal" Serrano and Ela "Bam Bam" Nunez after "fight of the year" contender

And if you’re looking for a case in point, look no further than undefeated IBF female super featherweight title holder Amanda “The Real Deal” Serrano’s (14-0-1, 9-KOs) February 17th effort against Ela ‘Bam Bam’ Nunez (11-13-2) in an eight round co-main event non-title bout in Chicago. Boxing websites such as Philboxing.com are calling the battle an early contender for “fight of the year” status, but otherwise, it’s not as if the offers are pouring in to Serrano who puts on that caliber of fight EVERY TIME she enters the ring.

The fight was streamed live and for free on 360boxing.com, and for those lucky enough to watch the fight, it was a boxing treat albeit, within the parameters of a video stream with lagging images and breakups.  Imagine how much better and more exciting it would have been if it had also been promoted on Showtime?

So again, what’s the deal?  How about putting women’s MMA and Women’s Boxing on the airways!  And P. S., female boxers are VERY capable of fighting three-minute rounds!

In case you missed it, here’s the Serrano v. Nunez February 17, 2012 fight.  You be the judge.

Keisher “Fire” Mcleod-Wells set to fight on March 7th @ Broadway Boxing!

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>>>UPDATE>>>

Fire Mcleod-Wells takes it after six exciting and competitive rounds!  She handed Patricia Alcivar her first loss by split decision: two judges scored the fight for Fire 57-55, and the third  judge scored it the same way for Alcivar.  Both fighters were treated to a standing ovation!!!

Keisher “Fire” Mcleod-Wells set to fight on March 7th @ Broadway Boxing!

Gleason’s own Keisher “Fire” McLeod-Wells (4-2, 1-KO) will be returning to the ring on March 7, 2012 against Patricia “Patty Boom Boom” Alcivar (5-0, 3-KOs) in a six-round bout on the Broadway Boxing Card.

Keisher "Fire" Mcleod-Wells, Credit: Luis Montalvo

Promoted by DiBella Entertainment, this well-matched super featherweight bout will showcase the talents of two accomplished boxers both of whom are familar to the New York boxing scene.

Patricia Alcivar, Credit: QueensTribune.com

The bout will take place at the BB King Blues Club and Grill, located at 237 W. 42nd St., New York City.

Tickets can be purchased at Gleason’s Gym. The telephone number is (718) 797-2872.

Ticket prices are: $125(Ringside Seating), $100 (Seating), $75(Seating), and $55(General Standing).

All ticket sales benefit Fire.

Please buy your tickets from Gleason’s Gym and show your support for one of the rising stars in Women’s Boxing.