(DEC 3) It’s hard to
believe it’s been 10 years since I fought Regina Halmich in
Germany and when my husband got the opportunity to come to
Germany to work, I was excited about checking out the boxing
scene here where women fighters are treated like queens.
I remember I was in awe of what a production a Regina Halmich
fight was back then and she truly blazed a trail for all of the
talented fighters here in Germany now. Susi Kentikian is the
heir apparent to Halmich’s legacy and she is an exciting,
explosive fighter who has won over a large German following and
most recently the backing of Felix Sturm Promotions.
During my stay here in Germany I hoped to see some women’s
fights and Susi was definitely on my list of fighters to see. I
was pleasantly surprised when I found out that she would be
taking on tough opponent Carina Moreno despite having lost her
last fight to Melissa McMorrow.
Having fought Carina in 2005 and being beat soundly by her, I
knew just how tough she was. Carina has had a rough few years
between injuries and the difficulty of getting fights in the
U.S. She has found herself in the position of being a road
warrior traveling far to get fights. A combination of tough
losses and bad decisions saw Carina lose 4 of her last 5 fights
which was probably just enough of a sign of weakness for her to
be considered an optimal candidate for Susi’s comeback fight.
If you didn’t know the background for Carina’s losses, you might
think she is not the fighter she used to be, but nothing could
be further from the truth. Carina proved she is still one of the
top fighters in the game in her fight with Susi. This fight
pitted two queens vying for boxing royal supremacy.
The Killer Queen vs. La Reina made for an intriguing match-up
and the two queens didn’t disappoint. They put on an exciting,
action-packed fight that did women’s boxing proud and was
televised throughout Germany.
I applaud both fighters for their talent. Yet, despite having
all the advantages a boxer could hope for including hometown
advantage, promoter backing, youth, size, the luxury to train
full time, not to mention the financial sponsorship and support
to do so at a high level, the Killer Queen was not able to
impose her will over La Reina.
Carina used a quick double jab to frustrate Susi and kept a
steady barrage of punches coming. Although every punch that Susi
landed was punctuated by the crowd’s cheers, Carina answered
with 4-5 punches. Carina was the clear winner, but Kentikian
paraded around the ring at the end of the fight as if she had
won, and I was nervous for Carina as the judges’ scores were
read. But then in a split second Carina’s hand was raised as the
new WBA champion.
I was thrilled that two judges gave Carina a fair decision. It
was after the fight that Carina really demonstrated who is
boxing royalty.
At the press conference Carina started by complimenting Susi for
being a tough fighter and thanked Felix Sturm and the German
people for the fight and simply said she was happy to have won
the fight.
Kentikian and her promoter then went on to complain
in German at length about how they couldn’t understand the
decision and how they wanted to protest.
The idea that there was any wrong-doing with the judging is
absolutely preposterous. Carina wasn’t supposed to win the fight
and that she did get the decision is a further testament to how
well she did. An astute reporter asked Carina if she understood
what they were saying and when she said no, he explained and
Carina aptly responded, “I answered every punch of yours with
4-6 punches. One punch doesn’t win a fight. You are not a true
champion if you can’t take a loss. I have had losses and didn’t
make excuses.” It was disappointing that Susi or Felix Sturm
didn’t give Carina her due. It seems that due to her popularity
Susi believes she has a divine right to be the champ, but if she
wants to win her belts back, she will need to get honest about
her losses. The new WBA champ on the other hand is ready to rule
the world. In this fight, Carina re-established herself as the
queen of the ring. Her grit, grace and fighting spirit not only
won her the fight, but helped to raise the game in women’s
boxing. A fairy tale ending to this fight would see an American
promoter take notice and sign Carina. Unfortunately, she
probably won’t get any royal treatment when she gets back to the
U.S. I know she’s ready and willing to take on all comers, I
just hope she gets the opportunity to do so.
WBAN
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