(NOV 22) ALBUQUERQUE, NM "World
Dominance" features the top two women's boxers in the world,
American favorite Holly "The Preacher's Daughter" Holm (30-1-3,
9 KOs) and French knockout specialist Anne Sophie Mathis (25-1,
21 KOs), in arguably the No. female fight of all-time.
"World Dominance," presented by Fresquez Productions, will be
held Friday night, Dec. 2 at Route 66 Casino Hotel in
Albuquerque, New Mexico. The Holm-Mathis 10-round bout will be
contested for the IBA Welterweight title and WBAN Championship
Belt, as well as to determine the mythical No. 1 pound-for-pound
world championship today in women's boxing.
Veteran Lenny Fresquez has promoted Holm throughout her pro
boxing and MMA career and he is also promoting "World
Dominance." Fresquez sat on the hot seat to answer questions
about Holm, Mathis, female boxing and, of course, "World
Dominance"
How significant is "World Dominance" for Holly as well as
women's boxing?
"This fight will confirm that Holly is unquestionably the No. 1
female fighter in the world. It is important for women's boxing
because they are the top two women in boxing today with 15 world
titles between them. Holly has nine and she set a world record
when she held all of the 147-pound belts except for the WBO.
"There are only three players today in women's boxing - Holly,
Sophie Ann and Cecilia Braekhus (18-0, 4 KOs - WBC, WBO & WBA
welterweight champion). Mathis is the bigger puncher of the
three and she has the best knockout ratio. But she has no
fan-base in France or a promoter. She's hard to promote because
she isn't very charismatic and unable to speak English.
Sauerland has done a great job promoting Braekhus, making people
believe she's a real world champion. She's not in the same
league as Holly, which is why we chose to fight Mathis first.
"It's a harder fight and we wanted to get that one out of the
way first."
What's next for Holly after this fight?
"As Holly's promoter, I'm always looking ahead to the next deal,
but Holly's not looking past Mathis. That's my job and I think
we have three possible options for Holly's next fight. 1.
Braekhus won't come here but we'd love to fight her in March. 2.
If this is a good fight, we can always have a rematch with
Mathis. 3. Holly can have a big MMA fight.
"The only way I'd even think about Holly fighting Braekhus in
Europe - she likes to fight in Denmark - would be under fair
terms and conditions that would include a good purse and neutral
judging. We've submitted a contract to Team Braekhus and we're
waiting for a response. We may go in another direction of we
don't receive a signed contract by the day of the Holm-Mathis
weigh-in. We've never waited on, or will wait on anybody.
Holly's career has always been well planned every year. We will
make plans after this fight for her in 2012."
How does Holly rate all-time in women's boxing?
"To me, she's the best ever. The only other female fighters in
her league, all-time, are
Ann Wolfe,
Regina Halmich
and, maybe,
Sumya Anani.
Laila Ali
fought on her father's last name and
she wasn't nearly as good as these fighters. There's nobody
else."
How frustrating is it not to be able to watch Holly fight
on HBO or Showtime?
"She's fought on ESPN and Telefutura, but HBO and Showtime have
no interest in Holly or women's boxing. Hopefully, the new head
of HBO boxing will. Spanish boxing fans are interested in
watching Holly fight because they've watched her grow-up here
(New Mexico). People don't understand the economics of promoting
an ESPN show. First, it affects the gate, and ESPN doesn't pay
like it used to. Between rooms, meals and other costs for ESPN,
it doesn't pay for half of the main event purse. At the
beginning of her career, Holly fought on ESPN for the exposure.
Now, everybody knows Holly Holm, so we try and make the most
money. It's upsetting to see the top pound-for-pound men's
fighters like (Manny) Pacquiao and (Floyd) Mayweather make
millions and millions of dollars, while the top pound-for-pound
female fighters don't even make a fraction of one-percent
compared to men."
Are you tired of criticism leveled at Holly for only
fighting in Albuquerque?
"Yes. They paid us well to go to Detroit to fight Mary Jo
Sanders in a rematch. It ended in a draw and Sanders retired
after that fight. Holly's also fought in Colorado and
California. We'll fight anybody, anywhere, anytime....as long as
the money is right. That's always been the problem, so why fight
for less money?
"People here love watching her fight and she has a great
fan-base. We'd love to kill that stigma by fighting elsewhere,
but it all comes down to economics. There are probably only 25
male fighters in the United States who put as many people in
seats as Holly does in Albuquerque."
Holly "The Preacher's Daughter" Holm
[Links:
Holly Holm bio
Holm Wins WBAN Belt]
Holm is a nine-time world champion in three different divisions
(light welterweight, welterweight and light middleweight) and
the 29-year-old boxer has an amazing 20-0-1 (6 KOs) record in
world title fights, in addition to sporting a 14-0-1 mark versus
world champions. She has fought and beaten virtually all of the
notable names of the past decade in women's boxing, from 135
through 154-pound classes, including
Christy Martin,
Mary Jo Sanders,
Mia St. John,
Jane Couch,
Duda Yankovich
and
Chevelle Hallback
(twice). Holly is riding a 24-fight unbeaten streak, dating back
to her only pro loss in 2004, when a serious cut under her eye
prevented her from continuing to fight.
Anne Sophie Mathis
[Link:
Anne-Sophie Mathis
Bio]
A six-time world titlist, Mathis is the reigning the WIBA, WIBF
and WBF World Welterweight Champion. She has won 24 consecutive
bouts, dating back 16 years to her only pro loss in her second
pro fight. Her Dec. 2nd showdown against Holm will mark the
fifth anniversary of Anne Sophie's first world title win, in
which she stopped previously unbeaten
Miriam
Lamare (13-0) for the WBA crown and vacant
EBU championship. Mathis' victims also include world champions
Couch, Yankovich, Ana Pascal and
Nathalie Toro.
For more information about "World Dominance: Holm vs. Mathis" go
on line to
www.FresquezProductions.com.