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(MAR 16)
Tonight Bowmont Boxing will present a professional boxing card at Ranchman’s
Bar in Calgary Alberta, Canada. On that night, Jelena Mrdjenovich
(Canada) 9-1 (5 KO’s) will face Tracy Carlton (U.S.A.) 0-7-1 (0 KO’s)
in a six Round Lightweight match. This will be the second time these women
have met. Mrdjenovich won their first contest with a 6 round unanimous
decision.
Rick: How much do you know about Carlton? Why are you fighting her again?
What is your game plan heading into this match?
Jelena: This is my second fight with Tracy Carlton, so I obviously know a
little bit about her style and such. We are fighting her again because that
is who the promoters wanted to bring back. I guess that they really enjoyed
the fight last time and wanted to have the same fight back. We have been
working really hard in the gym, so my game plan is to stay relaxed and try
out the things that we have been working on.
Rick: Are you in school or do you work?
Jelena: I work full time with my family’s company. I currently manage a
couple of our family’s hotels, which keeps me extremely busy.
Rick: What got you into boxing? Why do you compete in boxing?
Jelena: I started boxing after an injury as rehab, and just got hooked on
the sport. I went down to the gym and just never left! I think that the
reason why I compete is like most of the other girls in the sport, for the
love of it. If you don’t love this sport then it is hard to stay motivated
Rick: What is your best punch or combination?
Jelena: love throwing body shots, I don’t know if that is my best
punch, but I think that it is the most rewarding when it lands.
Rick: Are there any major changes you have made since your last match?
Jelena: We are working really hard on establishing my jab for the whole
fight, not just a minute of each round.
Rick: Are you concerned at all about going the 6 round distance?
Jelena: Not at all!
Rick: You have had roughly 1 month off. What did that time off do for
you and for your training?
Jelena: We only took about a week off in between the fight and training, so
it doesn’t feel like I have had too much time off. But time off is important
to any athlete. It is good because it lets my body recover from all of the
abuse it gets while training for the fight. It lets you start fresh and
gives you time to think about what you need to work on when you start
training again.
Rick:After this fight, what are your short and long term goals for this
year?
Jelena: I know that we tentatively have another fight scheduled for the end
of April, so that is what is on my horizon for the short term. As for long
term, I am not sure, I know that we have a couple of opportunities for
fights coming up in the next couple of months, but nothing is set in stone.
Rick: How is your training going? Are you doing anything in particular to
train for her?
Jelena: My training is going really well. We are working hard in the
gym every night. I wouldn’t say that we are specifically working on
strategies for Tracy, but more so that we are working on improving some of
my fundamentals.
Rick: Are there any boxers out there that you would like to have a match
with someday?
Jelena: I will fight anyone that my coach/manager puts in front of me! It
really isn’t my decision.
Rick: Do you have trouble finding sparring partners? If so how to you
get around this obstacle?
Jelena: No actually I don’t have too hard of a time, for the most
part. We have a couple of girls and guys down at the gym that are my weight
that have been around for a long time and know the ropes. Sometimes they are
taking time off when I am getting ready for a fight, but they are awesome
work for me and help me out a lot!
Rick: What do you think about women’s professional boxing in Canada? What
changes or improvements would you like to see?
Jelena: I think that women’s professional boxing in Canada is getting a lot
better; we are starting to get recognized as ‘boxers’. You are seeing more
and more female bouts on the cards and I think that soon enough you are
going to see a female bout be the main event!
Rick: What would you like too see happen for the future of women’s boxing?
Do you have any concerns about it?
Jelena: I think that I would like to see some better match making happen. I
know that this isn’t easy and that the boxers can’t control this all the
time, but it would be nice to see some ‘real’ title fights and challenges,
not all of these mismatches. I would also like to see some other female
fighters on TV and get recognized, like Jessica Rakoczy, Kelsey Jeffries,
and Chevelle Hallback etc.
Rick: Do you feel that there are any female boxers out there that get more
attention than they deserve or are wrecking the sport?
Jelena: Yes I do think that there are some, but that, I will keep to myself,
at least they are gaining exposure to the sport.
Jelena Mrdjenovich 9-1 (5 KO’s) 5’7’’, 130lbs, 22 years old. Edmonton Canada
WIBA: World rank #7 Super Featherweight (March 2005)
IFBA: World rank #4 Lightweight (March 2005)
WIBC: World rank #9 Lightweight (November 2004)
WIBC: World rank #8 Junior Lightweight (November 2004)
WBAN Ratings (Dee Williams): World rank #6 Lightweight (March 2005)
IWBF: World rank #3 Lightweight (November 2004)
By Rick McLean - Barrie Ontario,
Canada. riggs196@hotmail.com
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