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(MAY 5) Elizabeth Kerin recently sat down with Chicago Correspondent, Bob
Marovitz to discuss her recent TKO loss to Vonda Ward in Cleveland on April
30. Since that time, Kerin has been suspended by the Ohio State
Medical Commission for 90 days based on her being knocked down in Round Two
by Ward. Team Kerin is appealing the suspension.
BM: What happened in Rounds One and Two?
EK: Prior to the fight, I watched a lot of tape on Vonda. In all of
the fights that I saw she would drop her left hand after throwing a jab. I
went into round one, let her throw a few jabs, saw that she wasn't bringing
her hand back up and threw a hook to the body and an overhand right, just
like Ann Wolfe. Vonda went down, and I went to the neutral corner.
After an exceedingly long count she staggered up and was still dazed. The
ref got to 8 and told her to
walk forward, she stumbled towards him and he let her
continue. She held for the remainder of the round. I wasn't able to work out
of her holding...she had quite a bit of weight on me. I haven't fought at
heavyweight in sometime and took the fight on short notice. In round 2,
I came out swinging for the fences. She caught me with some shots and I went
down. I was on the ground and expected the ref to come over and begin a
count, he never did. He came
over and waived me off. I was perfectly coherent and asked why I didn't get
a count.
BM: After you knocked Ward to the canvas, were you thinking this is Ann
Wolfe/Ward all over again?
EK: Absolutely! That was the game plan from the beginning...I didn't think
it would happen in the first few seconds of the fight like it did though.
BM: What was your game plan when the ref let the fight continue and what
did Ward do?
EK: My plan was to catch her again. Her corner was screaming for her to hold
on and that is exactly what she did. The ref didn't do much to stop her from
holding, and like I said I came in pretty light for the fight so that
created problems for me.
BM: In Round Two, what did your corner tell you to execute and what
actually happened?
EK: George wanted to see me use my angles and move a little more, advice I
should have followed. All that I could see was that she was open for the
overhand right and I was looking for that.
BM: Regarding the knockdown in Round Two, were you on your back with the
ref looking at you while he started a 10 count?
EK: I was on my back, the ref never counted though, not even to 1, he made
no verbal indication of any count.
BM: Did your corner see/hear a 10 count and what were they telling you to
do?
EK: They know he didn't count...I was down right near them.
BM: Do you feel you could have continued the fight when the fight was
stopped or was the ref correct in stopping it?
EK: Yes, I could have continued.
BM: Did the attending doctor examine you in the ring after you got back
to your corner and if so, was any medical attention needed?
EK: The doctor came into the ring and asked if I was okay. I said I was and
wanted to know where my count was. The doctor never followed up with me
after that point...he never came into the locker room, never stopped me in
the crowd, nothing. As a matter of fact there was no post fight physical
performed at all.
BM: Once you got out of the ring, what happened and who besides your
team, talked with you.
EK: Vonda and Nikki Eplion were exchanging words...I told Vonda that she was
out in the first round and that I got robbed. I was scheduled to fight Nikki
on May 27th, a fight that I can't make due to a 90-day medical suspension.
BM: Were you examined again by the attending ring physician when you went
back to the dressing room?
EK: No, not at all.
BM: Were you told to go to a hospital?
EK: No, I went and watched my friend Fernie's fight and sat about two rows
behind where the ring doctor was sitting.
BM: What are your thoughts on being suspended and what does that do to
your career in the near future?
EK: I am not real sure at this point. I feel really frustrated by the
politics in this game. Even when you knock someone out you can't win in
someone else's backyard. Everyone who was at that fight knows that Vonda
should not have been allowed to continue. I wanted to do
something positive for this sport. I have always taken on every challenge, I
have not turned down a single fight offer and all that I have to show for it
is a sub 500 record and people telling me that I shouldn't fight people with
the experience that my opponents have had. I think just the opposite. I
think that everyone out there with a padded record should be ashamed of
themselves. All of the
'fighters' out there who refuse to travel out of their home state for a
fight should be ashamed. I spoke with the matchmaker after the fight and she
said that I was one out of three girls in the upper weight classes who are
willing to fight ANYBODY. That makes me sad. I have to seriously consider if
this is the type of thing that I want to continue in. There are some
warriors out there...Valerie Mahfood,
Kathy Rivers, Ann Wolfe...but the majority must practice the duck and roll
an awful lot at the gym because they are awful good at it! If Vonda believes
that she is the heavyweight champion then we have to re-match. Everyone at
that fight knows that I knocked her out with the first right hand I threw. I
can take three months and put some
more muscle on and knock her out again. That is one fight that I am
definitely willing to put up with the disappointments of the game for. My
trainer and I are planning a formal appeal to the association of boxing
commissions. |
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