Tag Archives: Jackie Kallen

Publication day, June 4, 2024, The Promise of Women’s Boxing: A Momentous New Era for the Sweet Science

2 Replies

The must-read book on the rise of elite women’s boxing

 

It’s 💥Publication Day💥, June 4, 2024!!!! Books on sale now!!! Links below!

🥊THE PROMISE OF WOMEN’S BOXING: A MOMENTOUS NEW ERA FOR THE SWEET SCIENCE🥊

by Author and Women’s Boxing Historian, Malissa Smith Foreward by Claressa Shields

⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️ Available for sale ⬇️ ⬇️ ⬇️

Amazon: Purchase here

Barnes & Noble: Purchase here

Rowman & Littlefield Publishers: Purchase here

The Promise of Women’s Boxing: A Momentous New Era for the Sweet Science is the must-read book on the rise of elite women’s boxing.

On April 30th, 2022, the first boxing super-fight of the era, headlined by two women and fought at Madison Square Garden, lived up to its hype and then some. The two contestants fought the battle of their lives in front of a sold-out crowd and garnered 1.5 million views through online streaming. It was the culmination of a long, three-centuries arc of women’s boxing history, a history fraught with highs and lows but always imbued with the heart and passion of the women who fought.

In The Promise of Women’s Boxing: A Momentous New Era for the Sweet Science, Malissa Smith details the exciting period from the 2012 Olympics through the true “million-dollar baby” women’s super-fights of 2022 and beyond. Rich in content, the stories that emerge focus on boxing stars new and old, important battles, and the challenges women still face in boxing. Smith examines the development of the sport on a global basis, the transition of amateur boxers to the pros, the impact of online streamlining on the sport, the challenges boxing has faced from MMA, and the unprecedented gains women’s boxing has made in the era of the super-fight with extraordinary seven-figure opportunities for elite female stars.

Featuring the stories of women’s boxing icons Katie Taylor, Amanda Serrano, Savannah Marshall, and more, and with a foreword by two-time Olympic gold medalist and three-time undisputed champion Claressa Shields, The Promise of Women’s Boxing offers unprecedented insight into the incredible growth of the sport and the women who have fought in and out of the ring to make it all possible.

Here’s what the boxing world has to say about Malissa Smith’s new book:

There is no one more knowledgeable about or dedicated to women’s boxing than Malissa Smith. Without bias, Malissa is able to translate her passion into words that satisfy an enthusiast while appealing to occasional fans. A must read for any diligent sports enthusiast. 🥊 Jill Diamond, WBC co-chair of the Women’s Championships, WBC International Secretary, Global Chair WBC Cares

Malissa Smith is the ultimate chronicler of women’s boxing. Her new book details the last dozen years, during which fighters like Claressa Shields, Katie Taylor, and Amanda Serrano have not only evened the playing field, but at times outperformed their male counterparts. 🥊 Steve Farhood, Showtime boxing analyst and former editor of The Ring magazine and 2017 Inductee, International Boxing Hall of Fame

Malissa Smith’s comprehensive analysis and understanding of this very important period in the evolution of women’s boxing makes for a terrific read. 🥊 Lou DiBella, President, DiBella Entertainment, 2020 inductee to the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Malissa Smith has given readers a very accurate accounting of women’s boxing. From the Olympics to selling out Madison Square Garden, she has revisited the history I’m proud to be a part of. 🥊 Christy Martin, retired boxing champion, 2020 inductee to the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Malissa’s grasp of, eloquence on, and in-depth research into the continued resistance of change to 3-minute rounds for women is equally fascinating and disheartening. A must read for anyone interested in gaining insight into women’s boxing. 🥊 Alicia Ashley, retired boxing champion, 2023 inductee to the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Malissa Smith has written a compelling book on the progression of women’s boxing, showing us the grit, determination, and perseverance that took the sport from the first ever inclusion in the 2012 London Olympics to today’s era of mega-fights. 🥊 Sue Fox, founder, Women’s Boxing Archive Network, International Women’s Boxing Hall of Fame

For anyone who follows and enjoys women’s boxing—this is the perfect book for you. It’s not just history and facts; this book is also full of stories and in-depth examinations. Malissa Smith did a terrific job! 🥊 Jackie Kallen, boxing manager, 2024 inductee to the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Malissa’s effort to document the journey of women’s boxing is nothing short of titanic. In a world where stories are told in spurts of 280 characters on social media, Malissa takes the time to delve into the struggles of every fighter, and she takes us along for a ride that is rich in both journalistic rigor and historical accuracy—with her gift for storytelling making it a pleasure to read. 🥊 Diego Morilla, writer, editor, and moderator for the Women’s Ratings Panel, The Ring magazine

Malissa has captured the wonderful growth of women’s boxing in her book The Promise of Women’s Boxing. She highlights how quickly the women have become a major force in amateur and professional boxing. And in many cases, the women overshadow the men. 🥊 Bruce Silverglade, owner of boxing’s world-famous Gleason’s Gym

The Promise of Women’s Boxing – publication date June 4, 2024!

2 Replies

I am so proud to announce the upcoming publication of my new book!

The Promise of Women’s Boxing: A Momentous New Era for the Sweet Science will be published on June 4, 2024 by Rowman and Littlefield. It is available for preorder now at the link: preorder – Amazon

Two-time Olympic Gold Medalist and three-time undisputed champion, Claressa Shields has graciously written the forward.

Overview

The book provides a timely exploration of modern women’s boxing, from its first inclusion in the 2012 Olympics to today, featuring such trailblazers as Katie Taylor, Amanda Serrano, Claressa Shields, and more.

On April 30th, 2022, the first boxing super-fight of the era, headlined by two women and fought at Madison Square Garden, lived up to its hype and then some. The two contestants fought the battle of their lives in front of a sold-out crowd and garnered 1.5 million views through online streaming. It was the culmination of a long, three-centuries arc of women’s boxing history, a history fraught with highs and lows but always imbued with the heart and passion of the women who fought.

In The Promise of Women’s Boxing: A Momentous New Era for the Sweet Science, Malissa Smith details the exciting period from the 2012 Olympics through the true “million-dollar baby” women’s super-fights of 2022 and beyond. Rich in content, the stories that emerge focus on boxing stars new and old, important battles, and the challenges women still face in boxing. Smith examines the development of the sport on a global basis, the transition of amateur boxers to the pros, the impact of online streamlining on the sport, the challenges boxing has faced from MMA, and the unprecedented gains women’s boxing has made in the era of the super-fight with extraordinary seven-figure opportunities for elite female stars.

Featuring the stories of women’s boxing icons Katie Taylor, Amanda Serrano, Savannah Marshall, Marlen Esparza, Mikaela Mayer, Natasha Jonas, and more, and with a foreword by two-time Olympic gold medalist and three-time undisputed champion Claressa Shields, The Promise of Women’s Boxing offers unprecedented insight into the incredible growth of the sport and the women who have fought in and out of the ring to make it all possible.

Reviews

Malissa Smith has written a compelling book on the progression of women’s boxing, showing us the grit, determination, and perseverance that took the sport from the first ever inclusion in the 2012 London Olympics to today’s era of mega-fights.— Sue Fox, founder, Women’s Boxing Archive Network, International Women’s Boxing Hall of Fame

For anyone who follows and enjoys women’s boxing—this is the perfect book for you. It’s not just history and facts; this book is also full of stories and in-depth examinations. Malissa Smith did a terrific job! — Jackie Kallen, boxing manager, 2024 inductee to the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Malissa Smith has given readers a very accurate accounting of women’s boxing. From the Olympics to selling out Madison Square Garden, she has revisited the history I’m proud to be a part of. — Christy Martin, retired boxing champion, 2020 inductee to the International Boxing Hall of Fame

Malissa’s grasp of, eloquence on, and in-depth research into the continued resistance of change to 3-minute rounds for women is equally fascinating and disheartening. A must read for anyone interested in gaining insight into women’s boxing. — Alicia Ashley, retired boxing champion, 2023 inductee to the International Boxing Hall of Fame

There is no one more knowledgeable about or dedicated to women’s boxing than Malissa Smith. Without bias, Malissa is able to translate her passion into words that satisfy an enthusiast while appealing to occasional fans. A must read for any diligent sports enthusiast. — Jill Diamond, WBC co-chair of the Women’s Championships, WBC International Secretary, Global Chair WBC Cares

Malissa Smith is the ultimate chronicler of women’s boxing. Her new book details the last dozen years, during which fighters like Claressa Shields, Katie Taylor, and Amanda Serrano have not only evened the playing field, but at times outperformed their male counterpart — Steve Farhood, boxing analyst for Showtime and  2017 Inductee International Boxing Hall of Fame

Malissa’s effort to document the journey of women’s boxing is nothing short of titanic. In a world where stories are told in spurts of 280 characters on social media, Malissa takes the time to delve into the struggles of every fighter, and she takes us along for a ride that is rich in both journalistic rigor and historical accuracy—with her gift for storytelling making it a pleasure to read. — Diego Morilla, writer, editor, and moderator for the Women’s Ratings Panel, The Ring magazine

Malissa has captured the wonderful growth of women’s boxing in her book The Promise of Women’s Boxing. She highlights how quickly the women have become a major force in amateur and professional boxing. And in many cases, the women overshadow the men. — Bruce Silverglade, owner of boxing’s world-famous Gleason’s Gym

Malissa Smith’s comprehensive analysis and understanding of this very important period in the evolution of women’s boxing makes for a terrific read. — Lou DiBella, President, DiBella Entertainment, 2020 inductee to the International Boxing Hall of Fame

For more information link to Rowman and Littlefield website for more information: 

Christy Martin and the decision: Is a hand worth more than an eye?

4 Replies

Christy Martin and the decision: Is a hand worth more than an eye?

As has been widely report, in a 5-0 decision by the California State Athletic Commission, Christy Martin lost her bid to overturn her June 4th loss to Dakota Stone.  

Writing to question the Commission’s decision, Christine Lusey started off her August 16th piece by writing SAY WHAT > Did a Boxer lose a Fight to Sex Discrimination?  She also quoted directly from Christy Martin’s appeal which stated, “In my 22 years of experience as a professional boxer, I have never seen a fight stopped by a referee or a fight doctor because of a broken hand or because a boxer winced.”

Over at Boxing Insider.com, Jackie Kallen took another tack in her piece entitled, Should we have instant replay in Boxing?  Her take was to ask if the way around questionable calls is to add instant replay — especially since the issues in the moment may be more readily understood.  She also opined that Christy’s choice of *power* attorney, Gloria Allred  may have annoyed the Commission enough to turn Christy down for that reason alone.  Kallen’s other point was to talk about the general issue of bad calls and how they tend to even out.

What I was wondering is whether a broken hand is worth more than say a broken eye?

So let’s talk about another fight, the Pawel “Raging bull” Wolak vs. Delvin Rodriguez back on July 15th a mere 6 weeks after Christy’s 50th fight as a pro.

Wolak v. Rodriguez was the fight that had everyone watching Friday Night Fights going wild — including the commentators.  In fact, the fight was sooooo hot, FNF suspended commercials from the seventh round on.

This is what Pawel Wolak looked like in the 9th round!

That eye started getting big in the seventh round, and he kept fighting with it THROUGH THE END OF THE FIGHT!  And if you watched the fight you could see that it HURT, but he told the Referee Steve Smoger and the doctors he was good to go … and they let him fight on!  Not only that, but the commentators ALL agreed that the fight SHOULD CONTINUE AND THAT THE REFEREE WAS MAKING THE RIGHT DECISION IN LETTING IT GO ON!

Christy broke her hand in the fourth round and kept on fighting even rocking Dakota in the fifth.  It reminded me of boxing gym tales about the guy who won fighting with nothing but lefts ’cause he broke his hand — and was the reason my old trainer Johnny Grinage used to make me do at least one round of lefts on the heavy bag every time I trained.

All I can say is that Christy was living that old saw.  As she went on to fight in the sixth round she had NO intention of quitting and only winced after throwing a huge right.  As she shook off her obvious discomfort Referee David Mendoza called the fight.

When it came to pain, however, it seemed as if the real pain on her face was when Mendoza stopped the fight!

Yep, she broke her hand, but stopping the fight with one minute left to go in the bout wasn’t going to do *anything* to help her hand — it was already broken.  What it did do was deny Martin and Stone the opportunity for a real close to their fight.

A lot of things could have happened in that fight and the Ref owed it to Martin to let her finish it out.

Let’s face it, the Martin v. Stone fight was a war — not unlike the Wolak v. Rodriguez fight.  I’m all for stopping fights when it is obvious that a fighter is being badly beaten and damaged — or is no longer able to defend themselves.

Was this the case here?  In my estimation no because we’re talking Christy Martin, as brilliant a phoenix as has every graced the boxing ring.  Christy, a dedicated professional deserved the benefit of the doubt, much as Pawel Wolak was given the benefit of the doubt by Steve Smoger — and Dakota Stone deserved the opportunity to win or lose unhindered by what seemed like a very unfair decision by the Referee.

I don’t know that I’d go so far as to say that the call was strictly based on gender — but it sure wasn’t boxing.