Laila Ali Answers Lucia Rijker and Others
By David A. Avila
March 11, 2005
(MAR 11) Rumors are flying that Lucia Rijker has signed a contract with a
promoter to fight Laila Ali.
Problem is that Team Ali won’t bite.
“That’s insulting,” said Johnny McClain, Ali’s husband and promoter. “I
haven’t even received a phone call.”
Ali won’t be fighting Rijker, but hopes to fight again against one of the
top super middleweight or light heavyweight contenders in the next few
months.
“I’m not going to fight Lucia Rijker,” said Ali before her last fight
against Cassandra Geigger a month ago in Atlanta, that she won by technical
knockout. “I’ve done that already.”
Two years ago Ali beat Christy Martin, a smaller but legendary fighter who
fans felt had a shot at beating the best-known female fighter on the planet.
But for the daughter of Muhammad Ali, it was a mismatch that she predicted.
“It won’t prove a thing,” said Ali of meeting Rijker, who regularly fights
at 140, while Ali fights at 168. “Fans are going to say I should have won
anyway.”
Another who doesn’t like the fight is McClain.
“To me to Lucia has one line in a movie and because of that she should get
equally paid? They are completely bonkers,” said McClain who is president of
Absoloot, the company promoting Ali and the movie he alludes to is Million
Dollar Baby, a film Rijker worked in. “Laila annihilated Christy Martin, she
was just too big and just to strong. Why would Laili turn around and do the
same thing with an even smaller woman?”
Ali said she admired Rijker in the beginning, but now she realizes her
motives.
“It’s just about the money,” Ali said. “Why won’t Rijker fight Sumya Anani
who’s been calling her out for years?”
The fights most boxing fans would love to see is Ali facing Ann Wolfe and to
a lesser extent against Leatitia Robinson. Not Rijker.
Ann Wolfe
Wolfe, who boxes out of Texas, is a middleweight world title-holder with
power that enabled her to knockout a much taller light heavyweight
title-holder Vonda Ward in one round. That single punch brought her much
needed recognition.
“Don’t go around saying you’re the best unless you fight the best,” said
Wolfe by telephone. “I’m a junior middleweight. I moved up and I fight
anybody and everybody.”
Wolfe’s team has said they offered a contract that would guarantee Ali
$330,000 to Wolfe’s $150,000.
McClain said he had Wolfe under contract and that she asked to depart. He
let her leave.
“They turned down two fights,” McClain said.
It’s not just a matter of money, McClain said, it’s the build up that
concerns him.
“You can’t just put on a fight and expect to sell 100,000 buys on
pay-per-view,” said McClain whose promotions with Ali and Jacqui Frazier-Lyde
and and the other between Ali and Martin exceeded 100,000 buys. “It takes
time to build up a fight.”
Wolfe doesn’t care who she fights any more. Though Ali is the most
recognized fighter in the world, it’s fighting regularly that pleases her.
“I don’t just box, I fight with my soul,” said Wolfe.
Another power puncher who was set to fight Ali but spurned the latest offer
is Robinson. The Chicago fighter signed a contract with Absoloot and
proceeded to knockout Monica Nunez with the first left hook she landed.
“I put her on TV twice. Nobody knew her,” said McClain about Robinson. “Now
they (Team Robinson) want $100,000.”
McClain said building up a fighter is the most important thing and is needed
to make a fight that would equal the purses being talked about.
Other prizefighting experts agree like Mia St. John.
“You absolutely need to build up a fight or have some kind of gimmick,” St.
John said, who has fought more than 45 pro bouts. “A lot of fighters don’t
realize that unless you’re Laila Ali the average boxing fan doesn’t know
female boxers.”
But Wolfe’s team says the fight can be made, but it’s in Team Ali’s yard.
“How about all of us talking together,” said Dana
Right now Team Ali seeks an opponent and is willing to travel to Japan to
find the right audience. But bring up Rijker’s name and the conversation
turns sour.
“That fight will never happen,” said McClain by phone on Wednesday. “For Bob
Arum to come along saying he’s making this fight with my fighter without
speaking to me, that’s not going to happen.”
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