Holm-Sanders “Finally!” set
Two of boxing’s top females clash June 13 in Albuquerque

Report by Chris Cozzone & Natasha Chornesky
Photos by Chris Cozzone
- FightWireImages.com

The departure of unavailable, unwilling Laila Ali has left a hole in women’s boxing, but those doing the chasing have settled for fighting one another.

On June 13, on a Pay-Per-View card televised from Isleta Resort & Casino south of Albuquerque, N.M., undisputed queen of welterweights and hometown favorite Holly Holm, 21-1-2, 6 KOs, holder of seven belts spanning three divisions, will face off against the undefeated Mary Jo Sanders, 25-0, 8 KOs, of Detroit, Mich., holder of four belts between four divisions.

It’s been a fight nearly two years in the waiting, much of that time delayed while Sanders left the welterweight division to climb north toward Ali.

“The more I keep hearing and talking about this, the more excited I get,” said Sanders. “This is going to be a show that will hopefully break down the walls in women’s boxing.

“We’re changing people’s minds about women’s boxing, putting gender out of the way.”

On Saturday, Holm and Sanders concluded a three-city media tour that started on Sanders’ turf in Detroit, continued on to Holm’s hometown, Albuquerque, then finished up on the day of the Pacquiao-Marquez II fight in Las Vegas, at the Luxor Hotel.

“We’ve been wanting a big fight like this,” said Holm. “There’s a time for everything and the time is right for us now. I think it’s good to have a lot of eyes watching what is not just female boxers, but boxers.”

The Holm-Sanders bout will be the main event of an all women’s card promoted by Fresquez Productions of Albuquerque. In addition to Holm-Sanders, three more women’s world title fights, all of the IFBA variety, will be shown on the telecast.

Holm and Sanders will fight for the IFBA jr. middleweight belt. The two have five shared opponents, with nearly identical results; and are undefeated in title fights (10-0 for Holm, 5-0 for Sanders.)

“She moves a lot and it works to her advantage,” says Sanders of Holm. “I’ll have to adapt, cut off the distance, and be quick to anticipate movement. We’ve seen each other fight, but this is what we train for. We’re both in phenomenal shape.”

Sanders’ manager/trainer, Jimmy Mallo, says he is surprised they were offered the fight.

“I don’t see it going the distance,” says Mallo. “I’m shocked they took this fight. Holly has never been in the ring with a fighter like Mary Jo.  I don’t think they can win this fight—in fact, I know they can’t win it. We’ll be bringing that belt back to Detroit. It’s gonna be a short night.”

As expected, Holm’s manager/trainer, Mike Winkeljohn, disagreed:

“Mary Jo is supposed to be the superstar,” he said Thursday. “Mary Jo was Ring magazine’s ‘Fighter of the Year’ in 2005. But Holly was Ring’s ‘Fighter of the Year’ in 2006—she’s everybody’s ‘Fighter of the Year.’

“Instead of everyone chasing Laila Ali, they should be chasing Holly . . . All I can say is I expect fireworks from Holly’s fists on June 13.”

“I’m going to train extra hard, because Mary Jo’s ‘O’ must go,” Holm said Saturday.

“She has the power and I think she’s the best fighter I’ve fought. She’s got experience and confidence, but that just makes me train that much harder.

“June 13 will be my day to shine.”

. . . . .

Three other IFBA title fights are slated for the PPV telecast:

• Chevelle “Fists of Steel” Hallback (26-5-2, 11 KOs), of Tampa, Fla., takes on Jeannine “G9” Garside (7-0-1, 3 KOs), of Ontario, Canada.
• Wendy Rodriguez (18-4, 3 KOs), of Los Angeles, fights Hollie “Hot Stuff” Dunaway (21-6, 10 KOs), of Van Buren, Ark.
• Eileen “The Hawaiian Mongoose” Olszewski (5-0), of New York City, by way of Honolulu, takes on Carina “La Reina” Moreno (16-1, 5 KOs), of Watsonville, Calif.
• In the opening bout, off-TV, Albuquerque’s Angelica “Danger Girl” Chavez will make her pro debut against El Paso’s Alina Baltizar, also debuting.

. . . . .

“Finally,” produced and distributed by Integrated Sports, will be available for live viewing on cable and satellite pay-per-view via iN Demand, TVN and DirecTV for a suggested retail price of only $24.95.

Tickets, priced at $50.00, $100.00, $150.00, $200.00, $350.00 and $500.00, are on sale at the Isleta Casino and Resort box office, www.tickets.com or at Fresquez Productions, Inc. (508.884.7484). For more information go to www.fresquezproductions.com or www.holmvssanders.com. Doors open at 5:30 PM/MT, first bout 7:00 PM/MT, first televised bout 8:00 PM/MT.