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Hanna Gabriels A Torchbearer In The Rising Tide Of Female Boxing
Hanna Gabriels A Torchbearer In The Rising Tide Of Female Boxing – In Costa Rica, a country of 4.6 million, reigning WBO World female super welterweight champion Hanna Gabriels is a well-known personality. Strangers stop her on the street and ask for a selfie. In the United States, where she is currently residing, she’s anonymous. But that may change. Female boxing, which has enjoyed a few brief spurts of enrichment, appears poised to emerge from the shadows and become firmly entrenched in the public eye, a stable component of the sporting mosaic. And Ms. Gabriels, who currently owns a 15-1-1 record, is in the vanguard of those pushing the envelope. She’s very good at what she does, she’s photogenic, and she’s bi-lingual, as comfortable conversing in English as in her native Spanish.
As a schoolgirl in Costa Rica, Gabriels attracted notice for her prowess in track and field. At age seven, she was competing against girls four years older. At age 11, she competed in the novice division in the Central American games in El Salvador. Equally adept at running, jumping, and throwing, she had the makings of a world class pentathlete. But at age seventeen she was sidelined with a herniated disc that left her bedridden for six weeks – doctors questioned whether she would ever walk normally again – and that put an end to her budding career in track and field.
After graduating from high school, Gabriels spent a year in Oakland, California helping a friend manage a hair salon. While there she developed a fondness for doritos. “In Costa Rica,” she said, “my family was poor. We didn’t have money for snacks; only the basics.”
Hanna Gabriels A Torchbearer
With money to afford the luxury of junk food (and a hearty appetite born of homesickness), Gabriels predictably put on weight, ballooning to 206 pounds. But there was an upside to her sojourn. She became fluent in a second tongue — and for an athlete in a global sport, being bi-lingual can pay big dividends. Oscar De La Hoya transcended his sport, “building his brand” on both the English and Spanish talk show circuits. On the flip side, the career earnings of the great Julio Cesar Chavez Sr. were stunted by his failure to learn English.
Hanna Gabriels took up boxing at age 20 as part of a comprehensive program to lose weight. Four years later, she embraced boxing with a more serious purpose and had her first professional fight. Her father had boxed as an amateur, so there was boxing in the family genes.
At a gym in the provincial capital of San Jose, Gabriels honed her craft sparring with men; the alternative was no sparring whatsoever. The number of registered women boxers is increasing in leaps and bounds, but they are scattered around the globe and dispersed among the various weight classes. “What Hanna has accomplished,” says an admirer, “she has accomplished on her own. There are no great trainers in Costa Rica.”
On Jan. 9, 2011, Gabriels advanced her record to 11-0-1 with a 10th round knockout of Melisenda Perez at Punta del Este, Uruguay. Stablemate Bryan Vasquez, a future WBA World super featherweight champion, was also on that card. A nodding acquaintance between them blossomed into something more as they hunkered down to complete their training in Uruguay. They are now husband and wife.
Women athletes are subject to all the complications that disrupt the careers of their male counterparts, plus one. It’s called pregnancy. A 22-month period of ring inactivity that began in March of 2013 was punctuated by the birth of her daughter, Mia. The toddler may be the answer to a trivia question: name the only person whose parents – both of them – held world boxing titles.
Bryan Vasquez currently trains in Big Bear, California, under the watchful eye of the noted trainer Abel Sanchez. Hanna is with him in Big Bear, as is her mother, who watches the baby while Hanna does her roadwork. Sanchez and his associate Ben Lira will work Hanna’s corner in her next fight, the opponent, date, and venue as yet undetermined.
Gabriels hopes to someday land a rematch with Oxandia Castillo, the woman from the Dominican Republic who saddled her with her only defeat. The bout was stopped in the second round.
That match took place during one of the gloomiest periods of Hanna’s life. Her focus was clouded by the recent death of her dog, the faithful companion that nudged her into getting out of bed on those days when she was inclined to slough off in her training and would then tag along with her on her early morning runs. “Oxandia beat me fair and square,” concedes Gabriels, “but she isn’t better than me.”
Gabriels laughs when discussing her most recent fight, a lopsided 10-round decision over Rhode Island’s Kali Reis in Liberia, Guanacaste, Costa Rica. As the bout played out, the ring became smaller.
Well, not exactly. What happened is that rain started falling in sheets, soaking the crowd in the outdoor arena. Patches of the canvas became dangerously slick, forcing the referee to use his body language to maneuver Hanna and her opponent away from the affected areas. The province of Guanacaste was then experiencing a drought, making the incident more bizarre.
Hanna Gabriels A Torchbearer
The female boxers attracting the most buzz right now are Cecilia Braekhus and Claressa Shields. Raised by adoptive parents in Norway — where boxing is illegal – the undefeated (28-0), Columbia-born Braekhus recently broke with her German promoter and signed with Los Angeles-based K2 Promotions. Her stated goal is to win over North American boxing fans. Female boxers have a higher profile in Europe and other parts of the world than in the U.S., but American promoters have deeper pockets and can offer larger purses.
At the age of 17, Claressa Shields, a high school junior, was the star of the very first U.S. Olympic female boxing team. She won gold in London and hopes to repeat at the forthcoming summer games in Rio. She fights out of Flint, Michigan, where she was born and raised, which makes her story more compelling. The beleaguered citizens of hardscrabble Flint (if you go there, don’t drink the water) could use a positive role model to uplift their spirits.
A match between Gabriels and either of these ladies would be a big attraction, but the likelihood of either happening any time soon is remote. Cecilia Braekhus is a natural welterweight; Hanna is seemingly too big for her. Claressa Shields is in Hanna’s weight class, but it isn’t known if she will turn pro and, if she does, her management likely won’t rush her into a match against a strong opponent.
When her career is finished, Gabriels plans to work in some field of social work, ideally running a gym for people with handicaps and victims of domestic abuse. Despite her busy schedule she managed to earn a degree at Universidad Santa Paula in San Jose where she specialized in respiratory therapy. But she has more worlds to conquer before that day arrives.
Gabriels, who turned 33 in January, is younger than most of the top names in her sport. Female boxers that stay in shape tend to age more gracefully than the men, in large part because they go to war less often. Barring time off for another blessed event, Hanna Gabriels figures to win legions of new fans in the next few years.
Check out Hanna Gabriels’ full fight against Katia Alvarino at The Boxing Channel
Usyk Outpoints Fury and Itauma has the “Wow Factor” in Riyadh
Oleksandr Usyk left no doubt that he is the best heavyweight of his generation and one of the greatest boxers of all time with a unanimous decision over Tyson Fury tonight at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. But although the Ukrainian won eight rounds on all three scorecards, this was no runaway. To pirate a line from one of the DAZN talking heads, Fury had his moments in every round but Usyk had more moments.
The early rounds were fought at a faster pace than the first meeting back in May. At the mid-point, the fight was even. The next three rounds – the next five to some observers – were all Usyk who threw more punches and landed the cleaner shots.
Fury won the final round in the eyes of this reporter scoring at home, but by then he needed a knockout to pull the match out of the fire.
The last round was an outstanding climax to an entertaining chess match during which both fighters took turns being the pursuer and the pursued.
An Olympic gold medalist and a unified world champion at cruiserweight and heavyweight, the amazing Usyk improved his ledger to 23-0 (14). His next fight, more than likely, will come against the winner of the Feb. 22 match in Ridayh between Daniel Dubois and Joseph Parker which will share the bill with the rematch between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol.
Fury (34-2-1) may fight Anthony Joshua next. Regardless, no one wants a piece of Moses Itauma right now although the kid is only 19 years old.
Moses Itauma
Raised in London by a Nigerian father and a Slovakian mother, Itauma turned heads once again with another “wow” performance. None of his last seven opponents lasted beyond the second round.
His opponent tonight, 34-year-old Australian Demsey McKean, lasted less than two minutes. Itauma, a southpaw with blazing fast hands, had the Aussie on the deck twice during the 117-second skirmish. The first knockdown was the result of a cuffing punch that landed high on the head; the second knockdown was produced by an overhand left. McKean went down hard as his chief cornerman bounded on to the ring apron to halt the massacre.
Photo (c): Mark Robinson
Itauma (12-0, 10 KOs after going 20-0 as an amateur) is the real deal. It was the second straight loss for McKean (22-2) who lasted into the 10th round against Filip Hrgovic in his last start.
Bohachuk-Davis
In a fight billed as the co-main although it preceded Itauma-McKean, Serhii Bohachuk, an LA-based Ukrainian, stopped Ishmael Davis whose corner pulled him out after six frames.
Both fighters were coming off a loss in fights that were close on the scorecards, Bohachuk falling to Vergil Ortiz Jr in a Las Vegas barnburner and Davis losing to Josh Kelly.
Davis, who took the fight on short notice, subbing for Ismail Madrimov, declined to 13-2. He landed a few good shots but was on the canvas in the second round, compliments of a short left hook, and the relentless Bohachuk (25-2, 24 KOs) eventually wore him down.
Fisher-Allen
In a messy, 10-round bar brawl masquerading as a boxing match, Johnny Fisher, the Romford Bull, won a split decision over British countryman David Allen. Two judges favored Fisher by 95-94 tallies with the dissenter favoring Allen 96-93. When the scores were announced, there was a chorus of boos and those watching at home were outraged.
Allen was a step up in class for Fisher. The Doncaster man had a decent record (23-5-2 heading in) and had been routinely matched tough (his former opponents included Dillian Whyte, Luis “King Kong” Ortiz and three former Olympians). But Allen was fairly considered no more than a journeyman and Fisher (12-0 with 11 KOs, eight in the opening round) was a huge favorite.
In round five, Allen had Fisher on the canvas twice although only one was ruled a true knockdown. From that point, he landed the harder shots and, at the final bell, he fell to canvas shedding tears of joy, convinced that he had won.
He did not win, but he exposed Johnny Fisher as a fighter too slow to compete with elite heavyweights, a British version of the ponderous Russian-Canadian campaigner Arslanbek Makhmudov.
Other Bouts of Note
In a spirited 10-round featherweight match, Scotland’s Lee McGregor, a former European bantamweight champion and stablemate of former unified 140-pound title-holder Josh Taylor, advanced to 15-1-1 (11) with a unanimous decision over Isaac Lowe (25-3-3). The judges had it 96-92 and 97-91 twice.
A cousin and regular houseguest of Tyson Fury, Lowe fought most of the fight with cuts around both eyes and was twice deducted a point for losing his gumshield.
In a fight between super featherweights that could have gone either way, Liverpool southpaw Peter McGrail improved to 11-1 (6) with a 10-round unanimous decision over late sub Rhys Edwards. The judges had it 96-95 and 96-94 twice.
McGrail, a Tokyo Olympian and 2018 Commonwealth Games gold medalist, fought from the third round on with a cut above his right eye, the result of an accidental clash of heads. It was the first loss for Edwards (16-1), a 24-year-old Welshman who has another fight booked in three weeks.
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Fury-Usyk Reignited: Can the Gypsy King Avenge his Lone Defeat?
In professional boxing, the heavyweight division, going back to the days of John L. Sullivan, is the straw that stirs the drink. By this measure, the fight on May 18 of this year at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, was the biggest prizefight in decades. The winner would emerge as the first undisputed heavyweight champion since 1999 when Lennox Lewis out-pointed Evander Holyfield in their second meeting.
The match did not disappoint. It had several twists and turns.
Usyk did well in the early rounds, but the Gypsy King rattled Usyk with a harsh right hand in the fifth stanza and won rounds five through seven on all three cards. In the ninth, the match turned sharply in favor of the Ukrainian. Fury was saved by the bell after taking a barrage of unanswered punches, the last of which dictated a standing 8-count from referee Mark Nelson. But Fury weathered the storm and with his amazing powers of recuperation had a shade the best of it in the final stanza.
The decision was split: 115-112 and 114-113 for Usyk who became a unified champion in a second weight class; 114-113 for Fury.
That brings us to tomorrow (Saturday, Dec. 21) where Usyk and Fury will renew acquaintances in the same ring where they had their May 18 showdown.
The first fight was a near “pick-‘em” affair with Fury closing a very short favorite at most of the major bookmaking establishments. The Gypsy King would have been a somewhat higher favorite if not for the fact that he was coming off a poor showing against MMA star Francis Ngannou and had a worrisome propensity for getting cut. (A cut above Fury’s right eye in sparring pushed back the fight from its original Feb. 11 date.)
Tomorrow’s sequel, bearing the tagline “Reignited,” finds Usyk a consensus 7/5 favorite although those odds could shorten by post time. (There was no discernible activity after today’s weigh-in where Fury, fully clothed, topped the scales at 281, an increase of 19 pounds over their first meeting.)
Given the politics of boxing, anything “undisputed” is fragile. In June, Usyk abandoned his IBF belt and the organization anointed Daniel Dubois their heavyweight champion based upon Dubois’s eighth-round stoppage of Filip Hrgovic in a bout billed for the IBF interim title. The malodorous WBA, a festering boil on the backside of boxing, now recognizes 43-year-old Kubrat Pulev as its “regular” heavyweight champion.
Another difference between tomorrow’s fight card and the first installment is that the May 18 affair had a much stronger undercard. Two strong pairings were the rematch between cruiserweights Jai Opetaia and Maris Briedis (Opetaia UD 12) and the heavyweight contest between unbeatens Agit Kabayal and Frank Sanchez (Kabayel KO 7).
Tomorrow’s semi-wind-up between Serhii Bohachuk and Ismail Madrimov lost luster when Madrimov came down with bronchitis and had to withdraw. The featherweight contest between Peter McGrail and Dennis McCann fell out when McCann’s VADA test returned an adverse finding. Bohachuk and McGrail remain on the card but against late-sub opponents in matches that are less intriguing.
The focal points of tomorrow’s undercard are the bouts involving undefeated British heavyweights Moses Itauma (10-0, 8 KOs) and Johnny Fisher (12-0, 11 KOs). Both are heavy favorites over their respective opponents but bear watching because they represent the next generation of heavyweight standouts. Fury and Usyk are getting long in the tooth. The Gypsy King is 36; Usyk turns 38 next month.
Bob Arum once said that nobody purchases a pay-per-view for the undercard and, years from now, no one will remember which sanctioning bodies had their fingers in the pie. So, Fury-Usyk II remains a very big deal, although a wee bit less compelling than their first go-around.
Will Tyson Fury avenge his lone defeat? Turki Alalshikh, the Chairman of Saudi Arabia’s General Entertainment Authority and the unofficial czar of “major league” boxing, certainly hopes so. His Excellency has made known that he stands poised to manufacture a rubber match if Tyson prevails.
We could have already figured this out, but Alalshikh violated one of the protocols of boxing when he came flat out and said so. He effectively made Tyson Fury the “A-side,” no small potatoes considering that the most relevant variable on the checklist when handicapping a fight is, “Who does the promoter need?”
The Uzyk-Fury II fight card will air on DAZN with a suggested list price of $39.99 for U.S. fight fans. The main event is expected to start about 5:45 pm ET / 2:45 pm PT.
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Unheralded Bruno Surace went to Tijuana and Forged the TSS 2024 Upset of the Year
The Dec. 14 fight at Tijuana between Jaime Munguia and Bruno Surace was conceived as a stay-busy fight for Munguia. The scuttlebutt was that Munguia’s promoters, Zanfer and Top Rank, wanted him to have another fight under his belt before thrusting him against Christian Mbilli in a WBC eliminator with the prize for the winner (in theory) a date with Canelo Alvarez.
Munguia came to the fore in May of 2018 at Verona, New York, when he demolished former U.S. Olympian Sadam Ali, conqueror of Miguel Cotto. That earned him the WBO super welterweight title which he successfully defended five times.
Munguia kept winning as he moved up in weight to middleweight and then super middleweight and brought a 43-0 (34) record into his Cinco de Mayo 2024 match with Canelo.
Jaime went the distance with Alvarez and had a few good moments while losing a unanimous decision. He rebounded with a 10th-round stoppage of Canada’s previously undefeated Erik Bazinyan.
There was little reason to think that Munguia would overlook Surace as the Mexican would be fighting in his hometown for the first time since February of 2022 and would want to send the home folks home happy. Moreover, even if Munguia had an off-night, there was no reason to think that the obscure Surace could capitalize. A Frenchman who had never fought outside France, Surace brought a 25-0-2 record and a 22-fight winning streak, but he had only four knockouts to his credit and only eight of his wins had come against opponents with winning records.
It appeared that Munguia would close the show early when he sent the Frenchman to the canvas in the second round with a big left hook. From that point on, Surace fought mostly off his back foot, throwing punches in spurts, whereas the busier Munguia concentrated on chopping him down with body punches. But Surace absorbed those punches well and at the midway point of the fight, behind on the cards but nonplussed, it now looked as if the bout would go the full 10 rounds with Munguia winning a lopsided decision.
Then lightning struck. Out of the blue, Surace connected with an overhand right to the jaw. Munguia went down flat on his back. He rose a fraction-of-a second before the count reached “10,”, but stumbled as he pulled himself upright. His eyes were glazed and referee Juan Jose Ramirez, a local man, waived it off. There was no protest coming from Munguia or his cornermen. The official time was 2:36 of round six.
At major bookmaking establishments, Jaime Munguia was as high as a 35/1 favorite. No world title was at stake, yet this was an upset for the ages.
Photo credit: Mikey Williams / Top Rank
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A Shocker in Tijuana: Bruno Surace KOs Jaime Munguia !!
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Avila Perspective, Chap. 306: Flyweight Rumble in England, Ryan Garcia in SoCal
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Brooklyn’s Richardson Hitchins Wins IBF 140-Pound Title in Puerto Rico
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Fury-Usyk Reignited: Can the Gypsy King Avenge his Lone Defeat?
Usyk Outpoints Fury and Itauma has the “Wow Factor” in Riyadh
Fury-Usyk Reignited: Can the Gypsy King Avenge his Lone Defeat?
Unheralded Bruno Surace went to Tijuana and Forged the TSS 2024 Upset of the Year
Steven Navarro is the TSS 2024 Prospect of the Year
The Challenge of Playing Muhammad Ali
L.A.’s Rudy Hernandez is the 2024 TSS Trainer of the Year
A Shocker in Tijuana: Bruno Surace KOs Jaime Munguia !!
Ringside in Ontario where Alexis Rocha and Raul Curiel Battled to a Spirited Draw
Natasha Jonas and Lauren Price Win in Liverpool; Cutler Upsets McKenna
Results from the Chumash Casino where Akhmedov Gave a GGG-like Performance
Avila Perspective, Chap. 308: SoCal Rivals Rocha and Curiel Rumble and More
Cardoso, Nunez, and Akitsugi Bring Home the Bacon in Plant City
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Emanuel Navarrete and Rafael Espinoza Shine in Phoenix
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Featured Articles4 weeks agoRemembering the Macho Man, Hector Camacho, a Great Sporting Character
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Featured Articles1 week agoA Shocker in Tijuana: Bruno Surace KOs Jaime Munguia !!
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Featured Articles3 weeks agoR.I.P Israel Vazquez who has Passed Away at age 46
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Featured Articles3 weeks agoFighting on His Home Turf, Galal Yafai Pulverizes Sunny Edwards
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Featured Articles4 weeks agoThe Noted Trainer Kevin Henry, Lucky to Be Alive, Reflects on Devin Haney and More
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Featured Articles2 weeks agoIntroducing Jaylan Phillips, Boxing’s Palindrome Man
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Featured Articles3 weeks agoAvila Perspective, Chap. 306: Flyweight Rumble in England, Ryan Garcia in SoCal
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Featured Articles2 weeks agoCardoso, Nunez, and Akitsugi Bring Home the Bacon in Plant City