A guy named "Skinny" D'Amato, who ran
the "500 Club" in Atlantic City, before the casinos turned that town
brighter but dingier, once provided me with some sage counsel:
"Listen to everybody, but pay attention to the smart guys." While
that advice has a decided tendency to significantly narrow the
listening field in the sport of boxing, I always wondered how to go
about spotting the "smart guys." I came to the conclusion that one
sure way was to determine who's the best at what they do. When it
comes to promoting the sport of Women's boxing, Lenny Fresquez is as
far ahead of the field as Secretariat was coming down the stretch in
the 1973 Belmont Stakes. Fresquez, when I spoke to him, on the
phone, early last week from his home in Albuquerque, NM, was in the
run-up to the December 4 ten round bout between his fighter, Holly
Holm, and Melissa Hernandez.
It's not hard to make the case that if you come across a good female
boxing bout in this country, Lenny Fresquez is involved. And, in
most cases, Fresquez is, more often than not, the prime mover behind
the bout. That's the case with the December 4 card at the Isleta
Casino in Albuquerque. Of course, critics might carp that with Holly
Holm as the main attraction, good female bouts are not that
difficult to make, reiterating the old boxing adage: "great fighters
create great promoters." And while conceding that Holly Holm may be
the top pound/pound female boxer in the US, it is worth remembering
that Fresquez has been the impetus behind Holm since she began her
professional career, seven years ago. He has guided the fighter
along a steady path upward through the ranks of the 140 pound weight
division to a point where she was ready for the top boxers in the
top weight class in the sport. It was then that Fresquez established
Albuquerque as the go-thru point for the most competitive and talent
laden weight class in Women's boxing. It was a carefully designed
strategy that culminated in Holly Holm putting together a winning
streak against some of the best fighters in the sport. And, as Lenny
Fresquez reasons, Holly Holm isn't done yet.
"Holly is still young for this sport (28)," Fresquez states, "and
what's most exciting is that she continues to improve her skills and
she has developed into a complete fighter. Early in her career, she
won bouts primarily with her boxing and, although formidable, she
was not the attraction she is today. The sport, right or wrong, is
about punching power and Holly's improvement in that area was
particularly apparent in her last two bouts (Duda Yankovich and
Terri Blair). In both bouts, Holly showed devastating punching
power, stopping Yankovich (in four rounds) and overwhelming Blair,
who is a very tough fighter. Holly is an almost completely different
fighter than three years ago; she's now "sitting down" on her
punches and, given her age, if she so chooses, she has a long career
still ahead, if she doesn't run out of opponents."
Next up for Holm is Melissa Hernandez, who has campaigned at 130
pounds and below and who is making a sizable "step up" in weight for
the December 4 bout, a situation unique for both fighters: Hernandez
has never fought a fighter as big as Holm and Holm has never been in
with a fighter of Hernandez's size and quickness. Asked about making
the bout, Fresquez explained, "She (Hernandez) let it be known she
wanted the bout. She has made a name at the lighter weights and she
has skills. She's also a big talker, which, frankly, never hurts a
promotion as long as it doesn't get out of hand, and, so far, it
hasn't. We were looking at a couple of other fighters for the
December 4 date, but decided on Hernandez as the best and most
interesting opponent. There are only about 300/400 seats left (as of
early last week in the 2800 Isleta Casino). Holly continues to be an
amazingly popular attraction in Albuquerque and I expect a sell out
on December 4."
As to the future, Fresquez concedes that, after Hernandez, "Anne
Sophie Mathis would be the logical opponent. We'd love to make that
fight. We've had some discussions with the Mathis management team
but, to date, we've been unable to come to an agreement." Would Holm
go to Europe for the bout? "As I've always made clear, if the money
is right, Holly will go anywhere to fight anyone. We went to Detroit
for the second (Mary Jo) Sanders bout. But to leave the situation we
have here in Albuquerque, the economics have to be right." The
Mathis fight might be considered the pinnacle, to date, of Holm's
career. Holm has beaten all of the quality fighters in the United
States and Mathis is at the top of the 140 pound weight class in
Europe. Fresquez, like any good promoter, considers a Mathis bout,
"just one more fight" for Holm. When it's pointed out that Mathis
has twice beaten Myriam Lamare (once by TKO) and that Lamare is a
fighter that Holly Holm didn't quite "devastate" (a ten round
decision in Albuquerque last January), Fresquez makes the case that
Lamare was at the top of her game against Holm: "She had one of her
best training camps for that (Holm) fight." (Lucia Rijker was part
of the Lamare team in January). The smart guys can give you an
explanation for everything.
But, last week, it was December 4 and Holm/Hernandez that commanded
Lenny Fresquez's attention. It was those remaining tickets for the
fight, it was the details of the webcast that will be broadcast "for
a reasonable fee ($8.95)," it was the myriad details that plague
every fight promoter as fight night closes in. But Lenny Fresquez
has done this before, he's done it with Holly Holm, he's done it at
Isleta Casino and he's done it well, as well, if not better than
anyone in the sport of Women's boxing. "Skinny" D'Amato was right,
pay attention to the smart guys.
Bernie McCoy
