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5'3" Chantel Cordova
was born in Pueblo, Colorado, USA, on
23 December 1986. She began boxing at age 9 and her
brother Marvin Cordova Jr is also a pro boxer.
“My dad, Marvin Cordova Sr.,
who is my trainer, didn’t think women should box. So, my mom (manager
Sherry Cordova) was taking a few boxers out to Ignacio, Colorado, for
an
amateur show. She asked me if I wanted to weigh in and see if there
were
any females to box,” Chantel recalled.
“Just my luck, there was a
female in my weight class. I was a bit
nervous, but was anxious to get in the ring. With a two-round stoppage,
I had a victory over the hometown boxer! My dad was out of
town for work, but I called him and told him the
news. Ever since, he has been in my corner, training and supporting me!”
The Cordova family team helped
Chantel to a storied
amateur career that
included being the US national women’s champion in 2005 (defeating
Stephanie Gonzalez by RSCO-2 in the 101-lb semifinal and Adri Harding
by RSCO-2 in the final) and 2006 (defeating Colleen Loo 32-12
in
the 101-lb final). She also took second
place at the 2005 Pan Am Games in Buenos Aires, Argentina. losing to
Nancy Fortin of Canada by a 20-8 score. She was also a three-time
Golden
Gloves champion, including outstanding boxer of the tournament in 2004,
won two Junior Olympic championships and three Silver Gloves
titles. She
was the first Colorado woman on the US women’s national amateur team.
“In 2006 I fought for my last time
in the U.S. Championships, winning in
the pinweight division,” she said of her decision to go
pro. “I was
hoping that in 2008 there would be a few women’s weight classes in the
Olympics, but the committee did not approve, so I turned pro March 24,
2006.”
On
March 24, 2006 at the Arkansas Valley Arena in Rocky Ford, Colorado,
Chantel (101 lbs) TKO'd pro debuter Unity Young
(5'0", 99
lbs) of Denver, Colorado in the first round of a scheduled four-rounder.
On April 15, 2006 at Geary
County Convention Center in Junction City, Kansas, USA, Chantel (102
lbs) TKO'd Gina Abel (105 lbs) of Chicakasa, Oklahoma at 1:02 in the
fourth round of a scheduled four-rounder. Abel fell to 0-11-1.
On May 27, 2006 at USA
Arena in Rocky Ford, Colorado, Chantel (103 lbs) won a four-round
unanimous decision over Dawn Parker (103 lbs) of Winter Park, Florida,
who fell to 0-4.
On July 5, 2006 at the City
Auditorium in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Chantel (102½ lbs) again
fought Unity Young (98¼ lbs), this time TKO'ing the Denver resident at
1:06 in the first round of a scheduled four. This bout was
unexpectedly carried on ESPN to fill otherwise vacant air time because
the rest of the poorly-matched card ran
short in their time slot. ESPN's airing of this flagrant mismatch
between the technically skilled Cordova and
the evidently untutored Young was noted by
commentator Teddy Atlas as "not
helping the sport of women's boxing". Atlas
also blamed Young's manager and trainer for "not having the good sense to
see that she does not belong in the ring" and many
questioned why someone so unprepared could obtain a pro boxing license
in Colorado. (Similar sentiments were echoed
by WBAN's readers).
On August 26, 2006 at the
Convention
Center in Junction City, Kansas, the level of opposition stepped up
several notches as Chantel (102 lbs) battled Valarie Rix
(105 lbs) of Sanford, Florida to a six-round draw. Rix, who
also had
national level experience as an amateur, moved her record to 4-0-1 (1
KO).
On October 8, 2006 at the
Marriott Arena in
Junction City, Kansas, Chantel (103 lbs) won a four-round unanimous
(40-36 x 3) decision over the durable Natasha Wilburn (112 lbs) of
Atlanta, Georgia, who fell to 1-14 (0 KO's).
On January 4, 2007 at Harrah's
Casino and Resort in Mayetta, Kansas, Chantel (101 lbs) won a
four-round unainimous decision over Jodi Esquibel (104 lbs) of
Albuquerque, New Mexico who fell to 4-2-0 (2 KO's).
On April 14, 2007 at Harrah's
Casino and Resort in Mayetta, Kansas, Chantel won a six-round
unanimous decision over Melissa
Shaffer of Van Buren, Arkansas who fell to 9-5 (5 KO's).
Chantel then left
competitive boxing for a time to give birth to her son
Elijah
and to be a mother. Unafraid of a challenge, when she returned to
the ring after 32 months she immediately took on a former
world champion.
On January 28, 2010 at the
Coca-Cola Center in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Hollie
Dunaway (107 lbs) won a six-round split (58-56,60-54,55-59)
decision over Chantel (107 lbs). There were no
knockdowns but Cordova's nose was bloodied. The former world
champion Dunaway improved to 23-8-1 (10 KOs) with the win.
Chantel came away encouraged, despite the split decision
loss.
On April
22, 2010 at the
19th annual Tulsa Charity Fight Night at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in
Tulsa, Oklahoma, Chantel was originally scheduled to meet
Becky
Garcia (5-1) of Mesa, Arizona, but Garcia withdrew. The
always-game Melissa Shaffer
(104 lbs), then based in Pensacola, Florida, stepped in for a chance at
avenging her earlier loss to Chantel, but
Cordova (106 lbs) rolled to a unanimous 59-55,59-55,60-54 decision.
Shaffer dropped to 10-8-0 (5 KOs) with the
loss. Among the
celebrities attending the charity event were former world champion
Sugar Ray Leonard, former heavyweight contenders Earnie Shavers and
James "Quick" Tillis, former middleweight contender and the figure
behind the Denzel Washington movie "Hurricane", Rubin "Hurricane"
Carter, comedian Eddie Griffin and boxing historian Bert Sugar.
“I felt real good. I went in
there and gave it my all,” Cordova said of the
win. “It felt like I landed everything I threw! It was good to be back
in the ring after a long layover.”
“My goal now is to get a world
title,” she said emphatically. She said she is comfortable
fighting at
either 106 or 112 pounds. “I
can lose weight pretty easily, if necessary, and don’t mind gaining,
if needed!” she laughed. “I want to fight and
stay active,” she said. “I want to keep
working toward that world title!”
On January 22, 2011 at
Arena Neza in Ciudad Nezahualcoyotl, México, undefeated Arely Muciño
(111¾ lbs) of Monterrey, Mexico won the
IBF Flyweight title by TKO when Chantel (111¾
lbs) retired at the end of the third round.
Cordova had no answer for Muciño's high pressure
attack and
her pro record fell to 8-2-1 (3 KO's) while Muciño's
improved to
11-0-1 (7 KO's). [Video]
The attractive "Gorgeous Babe"
Cordova has her own style, but does have ring role models.
“My female
role model would have to be Holly
Holm. She is a
good fighter
and a great person!” Cordova said. “My male role model is Manny
Pacquiao. He is a great fighter and a very humble person.”
“To my fans, thanks for all the
support, and stay tuned … because I’m
going to do big things this year! Keep your eyes out for me going all
the way to the top!” she added.
To schedule a fight with
Chantel, potential opponents’ managers should
contact her at, or
call her father,
Marvin, at 1-719-821-9756.
Page
last updated: Saturday, April 2, 2011
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