(JAN 30) This week Akondaye Fountain did a one-on-one interview with Michael Campbell.  Campbell gave WBAN permission to post this interview. 

MC: You just got back from Germany after challenging Natascha Ragosina for five world titles. How do you feel about your performance?

AF: I feel pretty good about my performance. You never really know you did until after you review the footage. After the fight I thought maybe I’d lost the fight. I knew going in that to get the win that I’d probably need to knock her out, so since it went to a decision, I was okay with her winning the fight. But then going back and watching the fight, I thought it wasn’t as wide as the judges had scored it. I feel that I performed well, I followed my game plan of moving forward, throwing punches, and going to the body. I know I hurt her in the third round I think it was, and after that she began to hold me every time I got inside.

She’s a good fighter, she moves very well. She’s a big girl, 5’11 ½“, so she definitely had a big height advantage. Overall I feel like I put on a good show, and fought to the best of my abilities and I know she respects me as a fighter.


MC: What can you take from the fight to improve upon or do differently?

AF: Basically, we know that 168lbs isn’t my fight weight. My last couple fights have been at 168 against girls much larger than I am. I thought I beat Kathy Rivers but got a draw. Both Kathy and Natascha are big girls. I think my true fight weight is 160lbs.
I think against Ragosina my aggression worked well, I backed her up. My body shots worked well, and my power worked well for me. So I think that at 160 and 154lbs, the girls wouldn’t be able to go with me and I will be more successful at those weights.


MC: It was a big event there, how was the treatment in Germany?

AF: The fans were good! I was a little concerned because I thought when I walked out that I was going to get booed. But there were no boos, they cheered me on and encouraged me. Before the fight there was a lot of positive support. After the fight many people came up to me and told me I did very well, actually a couple of German fans told me that they thought I won the fight. They are definitely good fight fans over there with good sportsmanship.
As far as going out of the country to fight, I’m not looking forward to that again any time soon. The treatment was good, but it was hard with communication, and with eating. I’m very picky with what I eat and eat limited foods even here in the U.S., so it was real hard for me to find something to eat, even though the cooks there were trying to accommodate me. I didn’t eat enough and I weighed in at barely 163lbs. Natascha was just under 168, so she had not just a height advantage but also a big weight advantage.

MC: Were you surprised by the differences in women’s boxing there from a fight in the U.S.?

AF: I definitely think they are more advanced there than we are in the U.S. They support ALL women’s sports a lot more in Europe. They really marketed the fight very well, there were lots of posters and advertising. There was a pre-fight press conference and the weigh-in was in a mall, so there were lots of people there, and they held a public open workout. They really do a lot more to market women’s boxing there than we do over here.

MC: Tell us your thoughts on Ragosina. Boxing fans here have seen her internet photos but probably haven’t seen her fights in the ring. She’s got a lot of titles and with the retirement of Laila Ali and Ann Wolfe, she’s the top middleweight right now. She’s big, but how is her power, can she box, and is she all that’s advertised?

AF: She’s a really good boxer, and she’s got good lateral movement. She uses her height well and she uses basic fundamentals. Her jab will keep you at bay and then she’ll come over the top with her right hand. She gets her punches off and then she’s moving. She’s a very good boxer, so whoever her opponent is will have to come up with a fight plan that can either slow her down or they have to move well to match her abilities. As far as her power, I’d say she’s about average. She caught me in the second round with an overhand right that dazed me, but with the rest of her punches I didn’t feel that she was any stronger than any of the other ladies that I’ve faced. But overall I’d say that she’s one of the top fighters out there. I’m not really sure how she’d do versus Ann Wolfe or Laila Ali. They’re both excellent boxers as well with great skills and I think it’d be a different fight for them because they’re both taller than me and it would negate her big advantage.

MC: Tell us how you got into women’s professional boxing.

AF: I’ve always been an athlete looking for different athletic adventures, ways to challenge myself. I started out with track and field, basketball, & soccer. I was a heptathlete at Texas Southern University, then competed in fitness competitions and did a triathlon. So, I’m definitely a true athlete and enjoy all sports. Towards the end of my fitness career, women’s boxing was being promoted quite a lot and I started to go to fight cards and study boxing and incorporated the training into my workouts. Some people I was training with thought that I had good talent and could have some success in the sport and so I went forward with it and now here I am one of the best in my division and looking to become a world champion.


MC: There aren’t as many women in the higher weight classes, and it’s hard for you to find competitive fights. For the future of women’s boxing, how can we get more fighters to come into the sport?

AF: I think there has to be more opportunities. In the past there were more promoters giving women’s bouts a chance. I think something happened, maybe it was that some of the bouts televised weren’t quality matches. So now they don’t want to put women on because they think that we don’t have the talent that it takes to be a great boxer, but there are some of us out there that train hard and are really passionate about the sport and have good skills and can put on good shows and make money for the promoters. I think that there are some women out there, including myself, that can do that and I think we only need more opportunities.

MC: You’ve fought from 154 to 168 and have said that you think 160lbs is your best weight class. There’s a vacant title at middleweight that you want to fight for.

AF: I hope that it could be my next fight. At 160lbs, the WBC belt is vacant. I would like to fight for that. I think that would give me more of an advantage if I was to go fight out of the country. I’d be recognized as a world champion instead of as a challenger, and then maybe the scoring would be fairer. Ultimately my goal is to be the best of the best, to hold multiple world titles. I had the opportunity at 168 and fell short, and I think 160 would be better for me and I will fight whoever’s out there. To be the best, you have to beat the best. I’ll fight at 154 as well. I know Mary Jo Sanders and Holly Holm are trying to make a fight, and I’ll fight either one of them. I just want the opportunity to showcase myself, to fight on television, and to become a world champion.

MC: Sell yourself to promoters. When fans come to see Akondaye Fountain fight, what are they going to see?

AF: Lot’s of action! I’m an aggressive fighter, I’m always moving forward, and I make the fight happen. I have good skills, I throw lots of punches, I go to the body well, I throw combinations, I can move, and I’ve got good defense. I’m attractive, so for marketing, it’ll be good to have me on the posters. I can draw lots of fans, and make the promoter some money.

MC: That’s a good point. We see with Ragosina, she’s very pretty and done some modeling. On the men’s side Oscar Delahoya is a sex symbol with cross over marketing appeal. How much of a role do you think being sexy helps promote women in boxing?

AF: Sex sells! I wouldn’t want it to be that way, but in women’s sports, that’s what a lot of people are looking for. I feel like I’m attractive and could do things such as modeling outside of boxing, but I’m an athlete first. I think that what needs to be recognized is our skills, our passion for the sport and athleticism, not just the sex appeal that we bring.

MC: You’re trained by Ronnie Shields at Savannah’s gym in Houston, the home of Lightweight Champion Juan Diaz, Evander Holyfield, and many other top fighters. Tell us about the atmosphere, what it means to your training as well as your relationship with Shields and your team.

AF: The atmosphere here is amazing, and I get lots of support. We all support each other, and this is my second family. When I was going to Germany, they sent me out with lots of praise and encouragement, everyone believed in me, they put together a card that everyone signed. The support is incredible and I think that’s what helps me to excel in this sport. I have a great team, and I get lots of support from my family, friends, everyone around me, and I think that’s important for any athlete.

My team, Ronnie Shields, Cedric Williams, & Brian Caldwell are awesome. They believe in me and I think I’ve improved greatly with the implementation of strength training and also swimming. The weight training has made me stronger, and my swimming has given me the endurance to go ten rounds. My fight with Ragosina was my first time going ten rounds and I felt great. So, my training went well and I was in great shape. Ronnie and Ced work well together and they work well with me. They accommodate me as far as what I need, I think I’m kind of challenging in a way, maybe difficult to work with, and they make sure that I have what I need to become the best that I can be, and most importantly they believe I have what it takes to become the best fighter out there.

MC: As far as improving the popularity of women’s boxing, do you think there would be any benefit in women fighting 3 minute rounds or 12 round championship fights, or both?

AF: I’m not really sure. When I train we go three minute rounds and I feel fine, so I guess if one were to train that way, with three minute rounds in sparring, etc., and prepare for 12 rounds, then it would be fine. If you’re a true athlete and put in the time and work and are dedicated then you would do well with that change. It just depends on what the fans wan to see and what the promoters think would be best for the popularity of the sport. It doesn’t matter to me, two minutes or three minutes, I’ll train for whatever I need to do to win the fight.

MC: Many boxing fans wanted to see an Ann Wolfe versus Laila Ali match up but it never happened. Both of them are near your weight class and you know them well. How do you think that fight would have played out?

AF: I think it definitely would have been a very interesting fight. It would have probably been the fight of the century as far as women’s boxing goes. They’re both talented and have a lot of good skills. I think Ann is more of the power puncher and Laila has a little more boxing skill. They say styles make fights. I think it was a fight everyone wanted to see and it probably should have happened in order to prove who is the best. Ann believes she was, and Laila believes she was, but we’ll never know. Maybe they’ll come back from retirement and fight each other. I’d love to fight either one of them.

MC: With their retirements, it seems that the two you mentioned earlier, Holly Holm and Mary Jo Sanders are the two premier active fighters right now. They seem to be on a collision course to face off against one another. Break down that match up.

AF: I think that also would be a great fight. Both of them are very talented with great boxing skills. Both are very busy and interesting to watch. They both draw big crowds, so I guess it would be interesting to see where they would fight, since Holly likes to stay in New Mexico and Mary Jo likes to fight in Detroit, so they’d have to meet somewhere. I do think it would be a good fight, but I’m not sure who would win, they’re both very good and always in excellent shape and match up well.

MC: I want you to talk about one more thing. One of the pioneers of the sport, from Beaumont Texas, and a dear friend of yours, Valerie “Wolf” Mahfood, recently retired. Talk about her and what she’s meant to you and your career.

AF: Valerie’s awesome, she really helped me out a lot. When I first started training as an amateur, she would spar with me. From the first time we met, we kinda bonded, and had a great friendship. Whenever we got in the ring together, to spar, we made it very exciting. She’s an exciting fighter and so am I so it made for great action to watch. She’s always been very helpful and up front with me, giving me constructive criticism. She really helped my boxing career and encouraged me. I talked to her prior to going over to Germany because she’d also fought Natascha. She really supported me and is a great friend. She brought a lot to boxing and she’ll definitely be remembered as one of the greats of the sport.

MC: Thanks Akondaye, congratulations on your title fight and performance in Germany, and we look forward to seeing you back in the ring soon.