American Female Prizefighter Celina Salazar Captivates Mexico

Published

11 years ago

August 23, 2013

When it comes to women’s boxing there are always a few loudmouths that claim to represent the viewpoint of all boxing fans and like to bark that nobody likes women’s boxing.

It’s definitely not true.

Mexico has always had more hardcore boxing fans than its northern neighbors the U.S. and when it comes to female prizefighting, the Mexican fans come in droves. During the past 10 years the myth has been shattered that female boxing is not popular in Mexico.

Recently, in Cancun, two female fight cards took center stage. They were accompanied by one male fight on the main televised card, but it was the women that dominated the fight card. And the 8,000 fans in the Plaza de Toros arena could not have been happier.

With drums beating incessantly and people screaming encouragement throughout the fight card, it was important to notice that when two American girls clashed, the Mexican fans didn’t care. They were immersed in the boxing match and were very vocal about it.

Celina “The Sweetheart” Salazar, who fights under the Arqangel Promotions banner, traveled outside of her native country for the first time and fought former world champion Ana “The Hurricane” Julaton in a 10-round featherweight bout. It was promoted by Golden Boy Promotions and Cancun Boxing.

San Antonio’s Salazar walked into the ring with only seven pro fights, but she also has experience as an amateur including winning the National Silver Gloves tournament several years ago in her weight class. Julaton was a two-time former world champion looking to get back to the head of the pack.

Behind a tight guard and bob and weave movement, Salazar pressured Julaton throughout the fight for 10 rounds and won every round according to the judges. The Texan was deducted a point for delivering a kidney punch when Julaton continued to duck low and grab ahold of Salazar’s body.

It wasn’t a good night for Julaton. Who knows what happened? It could have been over-training, it could have been the tremendous heat and humidity inside the arena, or maybe even the loss of weight. One other factor should also be noted Julaton promoted the heck out of the fight and it was through her lobbying Showtime Sport’s head Stephen Espinoza that the fight was made with Golden Boy.

Julaton’s efforts have to be noted.

Arqangel

A symbolic baton was passed when Salazar defeated Julaton last Saturday night in Cancun. The Texan signed a managerial contract with California’s William Bamish, who hired Arqangel to help his cause, late last year. Salazar had fought another Arqangel Promotions fighter, Melinda Cooper, in a six-round junior featherweight bout and lost a narrow majority decision. Following the fight, it was recommended to Bamish that he should sign Salazar. It’s not often that anyone can stand in front of the dangerous punches of Cooper and match her blow for blow.

“Melinda Cooper is the strongest fighter I know,” said Melissa St. Vil, who recently won the WIBA welterweight world title in New York. “She hits hard.”

Cooper won the fight and though Salazar took her first loss, it gained her recognition as an elite female fighter.

“I wanted to make something happen,” said Salazar, 24, who is trained by Arturo Ramos, an ex-fighter who fought under the Top Rank banner in the 1990s. She ventured to Las Vegas and lost the battle, but may have won the war.

Arqangel Promotions has two other elite female prizefighters and is poised to make some more noise in the boxing world with more signings. Last Saturday, Salazar symbolically carried her team’s flag with an emphatic victory thus letting the world know that the U.S. has some pretty good fighters too.

The Mexican fans were impressed. They had come to the arena thinking it was an easy fight for Julaton and left wondering when Salazar would return to their arena. Arqangel has plans for the female prizefighter from the Lone State and all of the other girls on its team too.

Arqangel Promotions is a California-based company focused on providing elite fighting women to the world and knows what it takes.

“It’s important because not a lot of people have focused on the women and a priority. They use them here and there but no one ever has put them on another level,” said James Pena, a member of the Arqangel Promotions team who added that they only represent female boxers. “Definitely television is needed and more promoters willing to put these girls on. Women always have a great fight. In the Rhonda Luna and Crystal Morales fight people threw money in the ring. I can’t remember the last time people threw money in the ring for a men’s fight.”

Pena, who formerly worked for mixed martial arts giant UFC, said that the MMA organization has the right idea regarding women fighters.

“Dana White has made Ronda Rousey a celebrity by focusing on her. There’s a bunch of girls out there that have the potential to be huge, especially in boxing. There’s a bunch of them,” Pena said.

And for those guys that bark that the women can’t fight, I’ve seen these girls knock out loud mouth guys in the ring.

That’s the truth.

Salazar proved last Saturday that the talent pool for female prizefighting is larger than most evaluated. Her win proved that a large number of female boxers are waiting to be discovered. And a large number of fans eagerly await to see them. From Mexico to the U.S. female boxing is ready to explode.

“It was different,” said Salazar about fighting in front of a television and Mexican audience in Cancun. “But it was awesome.”

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David A. Avila

Najee Lopez Steps up in Class and Wins Impressively at Plant City

Published

3 hours ago

January 24, 2025

Arne K. Lang

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Garry Jonas’ ProBox series returned to its regular home in Plant City, Florida, tonight with a card topped by a 10-round light heavyweight match between fast-rising Najee Lopez and former world title challenger Lenin Castillo. This was considered a step-up fight for the 25-year-old Lopez, an Atlanta-born-fighter of Puerto Rican heritage. Although the 36-year-old Castillo had lost two of his least three heading in, he had gone the distance with Dimitry Bivol and Marcus Browne and been stopped only once (by Callum Smith).

Lopez landed the cleaner punches throughout. Although Castillo seemed unfazed during the first half of the fight, he returned to his corner at the end of round five exhibiting signs of a fractured jaw.

In the next round, Lopez cornered him against the ropes and knocked him through the ropes with a left-right combination. Referee Emil Lombardo could have stopped the fight right there, but he allowed the courageous Castillo to carry on for a bit longer, finally stopping the fight as Castillo’s corner and a Florida commissioner were signaling that it was over.

The official time was 2:36 of round six. Bigger fights await the talented Lopez who improved to 13-0 with his tenth win inside the distance. Castillo declined to 25-7-1.

Co-Feature

In a stinker of a heavyweight fight, Stanley Wright, a paunchy, 34-year-old North Carolina journeyman, scored a big upset with a 10-round unanimous decision over previously unbeaten Jeremiah Milton.

Wright carried 280 pounds, 100 pounds more than in his pro debut 11 years ago. Although he was undefeated (13-0, 11 KOs), he had never defeated an opponent with a winning record and his last four opponents were a miserable 19-48-2. Moreover, he took the fight on short notice.

What Wright had going for him was fast hands and, in the opening round, he put Milton on the canvas with a straight right hand. From that point, Milton fought tentatively and Wright, looking fatigued as early as the fourth round, fought only in spurts. It seemed doubtful that he could last the distance, but Milton, the subject of a 2021 profile in these pages, was wary of Wright’s power and unable to capitalize. “It’s almost as if Milton is afraid to win,” said ringside commentator Chris Algieri during the ninth stanza when the bout had devolved into a hugfest.

The judges had it 96-93 and 97-92 twice for the victorious Wright who boosted his record to 14-0 without improving his stature.

Also

In the TV opener, a 10-round contest in the junior middleweight division, Najee Lopez stablemate Darrelle Valsaint (12-0, 10 KOs) scored his career-best win with a second-round knockout of 35-year-old Dutch globetrotter Stephen Danyo (23-7-3).

A native Floridian of Haitian descent, the 22-year-old Valsaint was making his eighth start in Plant City. He rocked Danyo with a chopping right hand high on the temple and then, as Danyo slumped forward, delivered the coup-de-gras, a short left uppercut. The official time was 2:17 of round two.

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Japanese Superstar Naoya Inoue is Headed to Vegas after KOing Ye Joon Kim

Published

13 hours ago

January 24, 2025

Arne K. Lang

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Japan’s magnificent Naoya Inoue, appearing in his twenty-fourth title fight, scored his 11^th straight stoppage tonight while successfully defending his unified super bantamweight title, advancing his record to 29-0 (26 KOs) at the expense of Ye Joon Kim. The match at Tokyo’s Ariake Arena came to an end at the 2:25 mark of round four when U.S. referee Mark Nelson tolled “10” over the brave but overmatched Korean.

Kim, raised in a Seoul orphanage, had a few good moments, but the “Monster” found his rhythm in the third round, leaving Kim with a purplish welt under his left eye. In the next frame, he brought the match to a conclusion, staggering the Korean with a left and then finishing matters with an overhand right that put Kim on the seat of his pants, dazed and wincing in pain.

Kim, who brought a 21-2-2 record, took the fight on 10 days’ notice, replacing Australia’s Sam Goodman who suffered an eye injury in sparring that never healed properly, forcing him to withdraw twice.

Co-promoter Bob Arum, who was in the building, announced that Inoue’s next fight would happen in Las Vegas in the Spring. Speculation centers on Mexico City’s Alan Picasso (31-0-1, 17 KOs) who is ranked #1 by the WBC. However, there’s also speculation that the 31-year-old Inoue may move up to featherweight and seek to win a title in a fifth weight class, in which case a potential opponent is the winner of the Feb. 2 match between Brandon Figueroa and Stephen Fulton. In “olden days,” this notion would have been dismissed as the Japanese superstar and Figueroa/Fulton have different promoters, but the arrival of Turki Alalshikh, the sport’s Daddy Warbucks, has changed the dynamic. Tonight, Naoya Inoue made his first start as a brand ambassador for Riyadh Season.

Simmering on the backburner is a megafight with countryman Junto Nakatani, an easy fight to make as Arum has ties to both. However, the powers-that-be would prefer more “marination.”

Inoue has appeared twice in Las Vegas, scoring a seventh-round stoppage of Jason Moloney in October of 2020 at the MGM Bubble and a third-round stoppage of Michael Dasmarinas at the Virgin Hotels in June of 2021.

Semi-wind-up

In a 12-round bout for a regional welterweight title, Jin Sasaki improved to 19-1-1 (17) with a unanimous decision over Shoki Sakai (29-15-3). The scores were 118-110, 117-111, and 116-112.

Also

In a bout in which both contestants were on the canvas, Toshiki Shimomachi (20-1-3) edged out Misaki Hirano (11-2), winning a majority decision. A 28-year-old Osaka southpaw with a fan-friendly style, the lanky Shimomachi, unbeaten in his last 22 starts, competes as a super bantamweight. A match with Inoue may be in his future.

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Eric Priest Wins Handily on Thursday’s Golden Boy card at the Commerce Casino

Published

19 hours ago

January 24, 2025

David A. Avila

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Model turned fighter Eric Priest jabbed and jolted his way into the super middleweight rankings with a shutout decision win over veteran Tyler Howard on Thursday.

In his first main event Priest (15-0, 8 KOs) proved ready for contender status by defusing every attack Tennessee’s Howard (20-3, 11 KOs) could muster at Commerce Casino, the second fight in six days at the LA County venue.

All ticket monies collected on the Folden Boy Promotions card were contributed to the Los Angeles Fire Department Foundation as they battle wildfires sprouting all over Los Angeles County due to high winds.

Priest, 26, had never fought anyone near Howard’s caliber but used a ramrod jab to keep the veteran off-balance and unable to muster a forceful counter-attack. Round after round the Korean-American fighter pumped left jabs while circling his opposition.

Though hit with power shots, none seemed to faze Howard but his own blows were unable to put a dent in Priest. After 10 rounds of the same repetitive action all three judges scored the fight 100-90 for Priest who now wins a regional super middleweight title.

Priest also joins the top 15 rankings of the WBA organization.

In a fight between evenly matched middleweights, Jordan Panthen (11-0, 9 KOs) remained undefeated after 10 rounds versus DeAundre Pettus (12-4, 7 KOs). Though equally skilled, Panthen simply out-worked the South Caroliina fighter to win by unanimous decision. No knockdowns were scored.

Other Bouts

Grant Flores (8-0, 6 KOs) knocked out Costa Rica’s David Lobo Ramirez (17-4, 12 KOs) with two successive right uppercuts at 2:59 of the second round of the super welterweight fight.

Cayden Griffith (3-0, 3 KOs) used a left hook to the body to stop Mark Misiura at 1:43 of the second round in a super welterweight bout.

Jordan Fuentes (3-0) floored Brandon Badillo (0-3-1) in the third round and proceeded to win by decision after four rounds in a super bantamweight fight.

A super featherweight match saw Leonardo Sanchez (8-0) win by decision over Joseph Cruz Brown (10-12) after six rounds.

Photo credit: Cris Esqueda / Golden Boy

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