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(JULY 4) April, as Mr. Eliot has told us, is the cruelest month. On the
other hand, July will be not be a "Waste Land" as far as the sport of
Women's boxing is concerned. On the thirtieth day of the month,
Lucia Rijker
and
Christy Martin
are scheduled to climb into a Las Vegas ring in a prototypal affirmation of
the adage, "better late than never."
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Also on tap in July, nine days prior to the Rijker/Martin
extravaganza is a ten round bout that, while lacking the firepower
of publicity that will surround the Las Vegas encounter, has all the
markings of a very good, possibly great fight. On July 21 in
Lemoore, CA., Jessica Rakoczy will defend her IBA Lightweight title
against Englishwoman, Jane Couch. |
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If the time honored matchmaking wisdom that "styles make fights" is
true, this should be a terrific match-up. At the risk of
overstatement, Couch/Rakoczy might be the best fight in the month of
July, certainly not the most heralded, but, just possibly, the best.
The WBC, the major sanctioning body in the sport, seems to agree, as
that organization will recognize the winner as it's lightweight
champion. |
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Jane Couch is no stranger to great fights. In June 2002, she went toe-to-toe
with
Sumya Anani
in Waco, TX and on ESPN before succumbing, in the fourth round, to the power
of the "Island Girl" in a bout many adjudged to be the "fight of the year."
Two years later, at Foxwoods Resorts in Connecticut, Couch won a virtually
clinch-free ten round fight with
Jaime Clampitt
in a bout that anyone with two eyes knew was the
"fight of the year" for 2004.
Couch has, over a 25-6 career, been in the ring with most of the top
fighters in the sport including Lucia Rijker, Dora Webber, Leah Mellinger
and Marischa Sjauw. This will be Couch's first bout of the year after four
bouts (three wins) last year. Couch's inactivity was due to a persistent
skin disorder, which pulled her out of a return bout with Clampitt and
hindered her training schedule well into 2005.
Likewise, Jessica Rakoczy, with a record of 18-1, is a "keep busy" fighter
who keeps busy, unlike some others in the sport, with quality opposition,
Jane Couch being the latest example. Her lone loss was in January 2003 to
Jenifer Alcorn, a decision many ringside observers thought should have gone
the other way. While disappointed with her first loss, when asked about the
bout, Rakoczy replies that the Alcorn bout actually made her "more hungry to
succeed in the sport", providing, what she now views as a springboard for
her career. "It was a question of (sulking over the loss) or going back to
the gym and starting to work all the harder. I chose to go back to the gym
and work harder and, in a way, I actually look on that bout as being
strangely beneficial." And when you listen to the passionate way she talks
about the Alcorn bout and her subsequent re-energizing, you just write it
down as fact.
After the Alcorn bout and a year hiatus from competition, Rakoczy has reeled
off seven straight wins. Asked if the Couch bout was the biggest fight of
her career, she quickly answers, "oh, yeah, definitely." Rakoczy/Couch is on
a card with Sam Soliman and Fernando Zuniga as the "main go", a bout
scheduled to be televised "live" on the "Best Damn Sport Show" on Fox
Sports. The women's bout will, hopefully, be telecast, on a "db" basis on
the network's Sunday Night Fights shortly thereafter.
Couch/Rakoczy has all the markings of a "best fight of the night" bout. Jane
Couch knows only one gear, forward. She is a press-ahead, straight forward
fighter whose game plan is to keep constant pressure on her opponent. She's
kept pressure on some of the best fighters in the sport and while Couch does
not benefit from an abundance of publicity on this side of the Atlantic
Ocean, once in the ring, she's not hard to find..
Jessica Rakoczy, in a contrast that makes this bout so compelling, may be
one of the quickest fighters in the lightweight division. Last April,
Rakoczy, displayed that speed with a eight round decision over Mia St. John,
no slouch at moving around the ring. In a February return, Rakoczy stopped
St. John in two rounds. Also on her record is a win over Layla McCarter, who
Rakoczy out-boxed over six rounds in February ' 02 and out-boxing McCarter
is a bit like taking Michael Jordan in a one-on-one schoolyard match-up.
Couch, no stranger to transcontinental "road trips" for bouts, was asked if
traveling seven time zones was an impediment. "They'll probably bring me in
about two days before (the bout) and to be honest the later the better, for
me. Fighting before a home crowd is tough (but) you just have to work twice
as hard." Couch brought that same attitude to Connecticut against Clampitt
and came away with both the NABAW and IWBF titles. She'll "bring it" to
Lemoore on July 21. In Rakoczy she'll be facing a fighter who also knows all
about bringing a hard-work ethic into the ring with her..
So, on July 21 in Lemoore, two very determined fighters, two fighters will
an overload of skill, two fighters with the type of contrasting skills that
make for memorable fights, will square off for ten rounds of boxing that
often defines the best of Women's boxing. Nine days later, in Las Vegas,
Christy Martin and Lucia Rijker and the specter of "Million
Dollar Baby" will be on PPV display. These are two very good bouts,
one comparatively under the radar of national attention and the other
striving to live up to very high expectations. Hopefully, both bouts will
live up to the potential that these four quality fighters in the sport
offer.
You'll hear a lot more about Lucia Rijker and Christy Martin and with good
reason; it's a good fight. But, in Lemoore, CA on July 21, there's another
very good fight with two skilled boxers. July is the month for fireworks and
these two bouts will provide plenty. Put them down as #1 and #1A.
Bernie McCoy |
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