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5'1" straw-weight Stephanie "All Action" Dobbs from Moore,
Oklahoma was born on 20 December 1980. Managed by Bobby Dobbs, she began boxing
professionally at age 21 with no prior amateur experience, which meant that she
learned some hard lessons in the ring early in her career.
But Dobbs clearly loves the sport, and has hung in like a true warrior,
making improvements with every fight that she took, while following the
fastest-paced schedule of any female boxer. She has taken fights with
novices and with world champions alike at a dizzying rate. Stephanie lives
up to her ring name of “All Action” with a relentless,
take-the-fight-to-her-opponent style that has earned her fans even in her
losses.
Stephanie made her debut on March 1, 2002 at the Wild Wings Club
in Fort Smith, Arkansas, losing by a four-round unanimous decision to flyweight
Sarah Goodson of Arkansas who advanced her own record
to 5-12-1 with the win.
On May 25, 2002 at the Hilton in Las Vegas, Nevada, Canadian Mandy Lapointe (115
lbs), then fighting out of Las Vegas, advanced her own pro record to 2-1-1 (1
KO) by TKO'ing Stephanie (113 lbs) at 0:25 in the first round. Lapointe caught
Dobbs with a hard straight right as soon as the fight began, then unleashed a
stream of combinations that persuaded the referee to stop it immediately.
Lapointe had been the 2001 Canadian national amateur 51-kg champion, and her
extensive amateur experience gave her a big advantage over Dobbs.
On June 22, 2002 at Wild Wings Club in Fort Smith, Arkansas Stephanie (115
lbs) fought to a four-round draw with Nout Bradshaw (115 lbs) of Fort Smith.
Dobbs controlled the bout and Bradshaw was penalized two points for holding.
Bradshaw's record moved to 0-1-1.
On July 27, 2002 at Gary Dales BBQ in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma,
Stephanie (112 lbs) notched her first win with a four-round unanimous
(39-35,39-35,39-35) decision in a rematch with Nout Bradshaw (115 lbs), who fell
to 0-2-1.
On August 23, 2002 at the Orleans Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas,
Nevada, rising teenage star Melinda Cooper (113 lbs)
of Las Vegas TKO'd Stephanie (110½ lbs) at 1:13 in the first round,
advancing her own pro record to 4-0-0 (2 KO). According to a ringside
correspondent, "Melinda Cooper landed almost at will on Dobbs, who never went
down but was tagged by successive clean punches for just over a minute before
being rescued by referee Joe Cortez. The only questions left after this brief
fight were about Cooper's power." Once again Stephanie had run into an
experienced amateur in the ring in Vegas ... Cooper had compiled a 37-2 amateur
record since she began boxing in 1996. On October 13, 2002 at
Silver Star Casino in Choctaw, Mississippi, FBRR #3 ranked strawweight
Nina Ahlin (104 lbs) of Atlanta, Georgia advanced to 9-3-1 (2 KO) with a
four-round decision over Stephanie (104½ lbs), a loss that Stephanie would
avenge later in her career.
Stephanie (left) fell to 1-5-1 with a loss to
Canada's Tracey Stevens
© Copyrighted photo taken by Mary Ann Owen
On November 8, 2002 at the Edgewater Hotel in Laughlin, Nevada, 1998 Canadian
national 48-kg amateur silver medalist Tracey Stevens (105 lbs) from Thunder Bay, Ontario,
Canada. advanced to 3-4-0 (0 KO) with a four-round unanimous (40-35) decision
over Stephanie (107½ lbs). The 27-year old Stevens sent Dobbs to the canvas in
the second round and then cruised to the win.
On November 2, 2002 at Municipal Auditorium in Shreveport,
Louisiana Stephanie (108 lbs) notched her second win by knocking out Angela
Kirkes (5'1", 108 lbs) of Shreveport in the first round. Kirkes was making her
debut and has only fought once since, also losing by a first-round KO.
On December 20, 2002 at Creek Nation Tulsa Bingo in Tulsa,
Oklahoma, Stephanie (107 lbs) celebrated her 22nd birthday with a first- round
TKO of Gena Abel (5'3", 107 lbs) of Alex, Oklahoma in the first round. Abel
retired with what she believed was a broken nose. Abel, also managed by Bobby
Dobbs, was making her pro debut.
On January 3, 2003 at Thunderbird Wild West Casino in Norman,
Oklahoma, Stephanie (105 lbs) won a TKO at 0:58 in the first round over
18-year-old Crystal Carpentier (4'10", 99 lbs) of Topeka, Kansas.
Carpentier fell to 0-2-0 and hasn't fought since..
On January 18, 2003 at Song Martial Arts Center in Atlanta,
Georgia,
Terri Moss (5'1½", 105¼ lbs) of Athens, Georgia won a
four-round unanimous (40-36,40-36,39-37) decision over Stephanie (104½ lbs).
Moss counterpunched well and landed numerous hard rights to the head of the more
aggressive Dobbs. Moss evened her record at 3-3-0 (1 KO).
On February 15, 2003 at Flamingo Laughlin in Laughlin, Nevada,
IFBA straw-weight champion Vaia Zaganas (103½ lbs) of
Burnaby, BC, Canada won a six-round unanimous (59-55,58-56,60-54) decision over
Stephanie (102 lbs). Zaganas, another former Canadian amateur champion, improved
to 6-1-0 (3 KO) with the win.
 On
March 7, 2003 at Edgewater Casino in Laughlin, Nevada, Stephanie (104 lbs)
scored a third-round TKO over Gena Abel (103 lbs) of Alex, Oklahoma, who fell to
0-3-0 (0 KO) in this rematch of their December bout.
On April 12, 2003 at Caesars in Lake Tahoe, Nevada, Stephanie (down to 102 lbs)
fought an exciting four-round (39-37 Hamaguchi,38-38,38-38) majority draw with
Diedre Hamaguchi (103 lbs) of Brooklyn, New York, who fell to 0-3-2 as a pro
boxer.
(Diedre, who was the first female to break the gender barrier at the New York
Golden Gloves in 1995 ... losing there to Jill Matthews ... had been competing
professionally since October 2000).
On April 25, 2003 at Thunderbird Wild West Casino, Norman,
Oklahoma, Stephanie (106 lbs) won a four-round unanimous (39-37,40-36,40-36)
decision over pro debut fighter Vanessa Honomichi (5'3", 106½ lbs) of Sioux
Falls, South Dakota. Honomichi hasn't fought since. On May
13, 2003 at Farmers Market in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Stephanie (108 lbs)
won by a second-round TKO over Nikki Verbeck (5'5", 106 lbs) of Paris,
Arkansas. Verbeck fell to 0-4 (and also lost her next five fights).
On June 7, 2003 at the Flamingo in Laughlin, Nevada, veteran straw-weight
Diedre Hamaguchi (5'1½", 103¾ lbs) of
Brooklyn, New York finally got her first win as a professional boxer at age
34, scoring a clear four-round unanimous (39-36,39-36,40-35) decision over
Stephanie (103½ lbs). Hamaguchi progressed to 1-4-2 (0 KO).
On July 12, 2003 at Caesars Tahoe in Stateline, Nevada, Stephanie
(107 lbs) won a four-round decision over unranked teenager
Hollie Dunaway (5'0½", 107 lbs) of Fort Smith, Arkansas, who slipped to 3-3
(2 KO). Stephanie's perseverance finally paid off , as this was her first win
over a boxer with a winning record at the time of the fight. Dunaway was now
7-3-0, 4 KOs. Dobbs’ record falls to 8-13-2, 5 KOs. One week later,
on July 19, 2003 at Reliant Park in Houston, Texas, Gracie Olivares (5'3",
111½ lbs) of Houston won a four-round unanimous decision over Stephanie (110
lbs). Olivarez, who had just turned 40, improved to 4-1-1 (1 KO) with this
win.
 On
August 15, 2003 at the Convention Center in Austin, Texas, 4100 fans saw WIBA
world junior flyweight champion Anissa Zamarron
(5'1", 108½ lbs) of Austin win a six-round unanimous decision over Stephanie
(106 lbs). Stephanie had substituted for Maribel Zurita
of San Antonio on the card. Zamarron, a veteran campaigner aged 32, improved her
record to 15-10-2 (5 KO).
On October 24, 2003 at KB Hallen in Copenhagen, Denmark, WIBF
European bantamweight champion Anita Christensen
(5'5", 117¾ lbs) of Randers, Denmark progressed to 14-0-0 (6 KO) with a
six-round unanimous shutout (60-54) decision over Stephanie (who had bulked up
to 114¾ lbs for this fight).
On November 15, 2003 at Greenwood Cultural Center in Tulsa,
Oklahoma, Sachiyo Shibata (5'1", 108 lbs) of Japan advanced her pro boxing
record to 3-0-0 (3 KO) with a fourth-round TKO over Stephanie (108 lbs), who
fell to 8-12-2 (5 KO) with this loss. On January 24, 2004 in
Shawnee, Oklahoma, Hollie Dunaway (now down to
108 lbs) of Fort Smith, Arkansas improved to 7-3-0 (4 KO) with a six-round
majority (57-57,59-55,59-55) decision over Stephanie (109 lbs). A ringside report says "The rematch
between Hollie Dunaway and Stephanie Dobbs was an excellent fight. Hollie
won ... in an obviously close contest. I had a chance to speak with
Stephanie after the fight and this little woman has heart. She is a great
competitor and a scrappy little fighter. Every punch has her whole body
behind it and she doesn't give up. Hollie Dunaway looked to be in better
condition and the final tally bore that out."
On January 31, 2004 at Expo Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Stephanie
(112 kbs) won a four-round unanimous decision over Tammy McGuire (121 lbs) of
Paris, Arkansas, who fell to 0-4.
On March 14, 2004 at Pechanga Resort and Casino in Temecula, California,
Stephanie (back down to 103 lbs) won a six-round majority (59-55,59-55,57-57)
decision over Nina Ahlin (103½ lbs) of Atlanta, Georgia, reversing the result
of their four-rounder in October 2002. Dobbs improved to 10-13-2 (5 KO) while
Ahlin fell to 10-5-1 (3 KO). Ahlin started the fight well using her speed and
quickness to beat Dobbs to the punch, but Dobbs kept coming forward despite
taking well-timed rights on the way in. The fight began to turn around as Ahlin,
who had not fought in almost a year, tired in the third round, while Dobbs kept
pressing forward. As Ahlin's punches began to lack crispness and miss their
mark, she still tried to fight outside but Dobbs was relentless in her pursuit
of her. Dobbs stepped up the pace in the fifth with Ahlin clearly fading,
landing several hard rights. Ahlin ended the fight drained of energy as Dobbs
began landing heavily and consistently.
Stephanie's management has clearly solved the problem of keeping her active,
which plagues so many female boxers! Against the 30-year old Ahlin, who was
unable to keep up with Stephanie's aggressive pursuit for a full six rounds,
Dobbs's busy schedule and repeated baptisms of fire in the pro ring may have
paid a significant dividend ... a hard-fought win over an experienced and
skilled boxer with a winning record.
On April 8, 2004 at the "Fight For A Cure" charity boxing card at the Wyndham
Inner Harbor Hotel in Baltimore, Maryland, IFBA straw-weight champion
Vaia Zaganas (103½ lbs) of Las Vegas won a ten-round
unanimous decision over Stephanie (101¾ lbs) for the vacant Women's NABA
Minimumweight Title . Zaganas used her ring movement, jab and stiff uppercuts to
pile up the points on the way to a clear (100-90,99-91,98-92) decision. Despite
the one-sided scores, Zaganas said that Stephanie had greatly improved since
their first fight and that she had noticed those improvements during the first
round. “She showed me a couple of new things, she is improving, she has
nothing to be ashamed of. I give her credit for coming in really well trained. I
could see how she was trying to pick her shots, using defense and using her
jab.”
Dobbs said she had practiced many new aspects in the gym but “a lot
of stuff is newly learned ... a lot of it is thinking. Sometimes I do something
in the ring and I don’t even know I did it. Right now I’m thinking a lot but not
doing it naturally,” she said. “I want to do it without thinking.”
Dobbs credited her use of head movement and jabs for avoiding being hit as much
as she was their first fight. “I made her miss a lot. I caught her with some
good shots. I definitely caught her a lot more this time.”
“Congratulations to Vaia Zaganas", said Dobbs, "a very good fighter
who sets the bar for me to reach for”. Zaganas improved to 16-3 (6 KO) with
the win.
Dobbs returned to action in a highly unusual "double-header" on June 5, 2004.
She first fought Sarah Goodson in a sanctioned
six-round bout at the Leggett and Platt Center in Joplin, Missouri, scoring a
majority draw and then drove 100 miles to Tulsa, Oklahoma for a three-round
exhibition boxing bout with Cindy Christian on a kickboxing card. Goodson
progressed to 9-14-2 (3 KO) with the draw in the sanctioned bout.
On June 12, 2004 at San Jose State University Events Center in San Jose,
California, Stephanie (110 lbs) lost a six-round unanimous (60-53 all all cards)
decision to former USA national amateur champion Carina
Moreno (111 lbs) of Watsonville, California. Moreno stuck Stephanie
repeatedly with a long left jab, and used her ring movement effectively while
peppering her with combinations. She snapped Stephanie's head back with a left
hook 30 seconds into the second round, then followed up with an effective
combination. Dobbs went to the canvas after a right hook just before the
second-round bell but sprang to her feet immediately, insisting she had been
pushed. After the fight, Dobbs was unhappy with the scoring and with Moreno
being credited for the knockdown, telling reporters
"I know I won at least two of those rounds, and there's no way she knocked me
down, that was definitely a push."
"She was coming in with her head a lot, and with another fight coming up, I
didn't want to get cut," said Moreno. "I didn't
get my punches off as well as I wanted to ... she definitely showed she could
take a punch." Dobbs, who's told WBAN that she prefers to fight under 105
lbs in future, took the fight on short notice despite its 112-pound weight
limit.
On July 20, 2004 at Memorial Hall in Joplin, Missouri, Stephanie (106½ lbs) won
a four-round unanimous (40-36, 39-37, 39-37) four-round decision over Addie Erb
(109 lbs) of Fort Smith, Arkansas. There were no knockdowns. Erb fell to 0-1-1.
On August 6, 2004 at Desert DIamond Casino in Tucson, Arizona, Stephanie (104½
lbs) lost an eight-round split (78-74,75-77,75-77) decision to
Sarah Goodson (5'0", 104½ lbs) of Paris, Arkansas for
the vacant WEBA Straw-weight title. Goodson improved to 11-14-1 (3
KOs).
On February 24, 2005 at Sports Palace in Kiev, Ukraine,
Alina Shaternikova (115 lbs) of Kiev won
the GBU 115-lb title with a unanimous (100-90,100-90,100-90) decision over
Stephanie (108 lbs). There was some pre-fight confusion over the contract
weight for the bout, which was reportedly given as 108 lbs on Dobbs's contract
but as 115 lbs on Shaternikova's. Shaternikova improved to 16-2-0 (3 KO)
with this win.
On March 26, 2005 in Kansas City, Missouri, Mary Elizabeth
Ortega of Kansas City (110 lbs) won a second round TKO over Stephanie (108
lbs). Team Dobbs told WBAN that "the fight was stopped prematurely in the
second round. Stephanie was hit with about three unanswered punches and the
referee Danny Campbell jumped in to a chorus of boos. When we asked him why
after the fight he said, 'Because of the Katie Dallam thing and all the bad
press about it lately, we don't want to take any chances with women's fights.'
He went on to say that if the fight were 'anywhere but Kansas City, I wouldn't
have stopped it.' As far as the fight goes it was a non stop slugfest with both
landing a lot of shots. But, it was a good fight and Mary wasn't winning by much
at the time of the stoppage." Ortega improved her record to 29-2-1 (7 KOs)
with the win.
On April 15, 2005 in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Stephanie TKO'd Gena Abel in the
fourth round. Abel fell to 0-8-0 with this loss.
On April 28, 2005 at Whiskey Tango's in Grain Valley, Missouri, Stephanie (109
lbs) TKO'd debut fighter Falicia Scott (118 lbs) at 0:55 in the second round of
a scheduled four-rounder.
On May 19, 2005 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Tulsa, Oklahoma, Stephanie (103
lbs) won a five-round unanimous (50-45,48-47,48-47) decision over previously
undefeated and WBAN #2 ranked strawweight Sandra Ortiz (101 lbs) of Topeka,
Kansas who fell to 3-1-0 (3 KO).
On June 4, 2005 in Tulsa, Oklahoma Stephanie (105 lbs) TKO'd Patricia Stickler
(111 lbs) of Bartlesville, Oklahoma in the third round of a scheduled
five-rounder. Stickler came out of a six-year retirement to take this bout.
On July 2, 2005 at the Events
Center in Reno, Nevada, Elena Reid (111½ lbs) of Las
Vegas, Nevada won a six-round unanimous decision
(60-51,60-51,60-53) over Stephanie (111 lbs). Reid improved her record to
16-2-5 (5 KO's) with the win.
Stephanie battles Belinzsky in Budapest
© Copyrighted photo by JollyDee
On September 3, 2005 at the Újlak School Gymnasium in Budapest, Hungary, in the
main event, Krisztina Belinszky of Hungary
successfully defended her WIBF-GBU Minimumweight World title by a ten-round
unanimous (97-94,97-93,100-92) decision over Stephanie. The bout was
action-packed throughout. Dobbs was the aggressor and maintained her attack with
power punches throughout the fight, but Krisztina moved and jabbed well to
control the action despite absorbing some hard shots. In the last round her
coach advised Dobbs to "put all her eggs in one basket", but Belinskzy withstood
her finishing effort. Belinszky improved to 15-3-2 (8 KO's) as a pro boxer with
this win.
Dobbs told WBAN that she felt that she "performed very well and that she won
the fight". She added that fighting on Belinzsky's home ground gave
Krisztina an advantage as when she tagged Belinzsky with a very hard shot, the
crowd was silent.
On December 3, 2005 at the Bördelandhalle in Magdeburg, Germany,
Hulya Sahin of
Turkey, now fighting out of Cologne, won a ten-round unanimous
(100-91,100-90,100-91) decision over Stephanie for the vacant WIBF
Intercontinental Flyweight title. Sahin improved to 13-0 with the win.
On February 25, 2006 at Farmers Market in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Stephanie
(115 lbs) TKO'd 19-year-old debut fighter Kalea Crain (109 lbs) of Hatfield,
Arkansas at 1:57 in the second round
of a scheduled four-rounder.
On March 28, 2006 at Remington Park in Oklahoma City, Stephanie (110 lbs) won a
five-round unanimous (50-45,50-45,49-46) decision over Savanna Hill (104 lbs)
of Fort Smith, Arkansas, who fell to 0-4 with the loss.
On April 15, 2006 at the Geary County Convention Center in Junction City,
Kansas, Stephanie TKO'd pro debuter Lisa Wittle of Denver, Colorado in the third round of a
scheduled four-rounder.
On April 27, 2006 in Tulsa,
Oklahoma, Stephanie (111 lbs) avenged her early loss to Canadian
Tracey Stevens (111 lbs) with a third-round TKO,
moving her record to 21-21-3 (13 KOs). According
to Bobby Dobbs' fight report, "Stephanie put
pressure on Stevens, kept her on the ropes, threw hard body shots. At the end of
round 3, Stevens indicated she could not continue and Stephanie was awarded the
TKO win." Stevens, who has now lost five straight, dropped to
5-9-0 (1 KOs) with the loss.
Stephanie battles Dee Hamaguchi in an open air match
© Copyrighted
photo take by Stacy Goodson
On June 18, 2006 at Remington Park,
in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, Stephanie and Dee
Hamaguchi fought to an eight round majority draw (78-74 Dobbs,
76-76,76-76) for the vacant WIBA Intercontinental Mini Flyweight title. The
fight took place in the afternoon, outdoors in blistering heat and
humidity but this did not hamper their non-stop action. Stacy Goodson who was at
ringside told WBAN that the fight was very competitive with both boxers going
back and forth, and that the fight could be a contender for "Fight of the
Year." Hamaguchi moved her record to 1-7-3 (0 KO),
On June 30, 2006 at the Denver Coliseum, in Denver,
Colorado,
IFBA Junior Bantamweight champion Terri Cruz (114¾
lbs) of Denver won an eight-round unanimous decision over Stephanie (111½
lbs) who took the fight on short notice as a replacement. Cruz
improved to 14-4-2 (7 KOs).
On July 20, 2006 at the Tachi Palace Casino in Lemoore, California, Carina
Moreno (107¼ lbs) of Watsonville, California won a
clear (80-72 on all cards) eight-round unanimous decision over Stephanie (107
lbs) for the vacant Women's NABF Light Flyweight Title.
According to Isiah Guzman of the Santa Cruz Sentinel: "Moreno
barreled straight forward at the opening bell. She slowed only after a head butt
late in the sixth round opened a half-inch gash over her left eye that required
stitches. The smaller and trimmer Moreno backed up Dobbs early and often with
constant combinations. When Dobbs, nicknamed "All Action," tried to stop and
throw back, Moreno beat her to the punch or broke through her defense with
straight rights and lefts. The fight remained like that, Moreno pursuing, while
Dobbs backed up and side-stepped ... to Dobbs' credit she never did seem wobbly,
even after flurries from Moreno caught her flush and left her left cheek and
forehead swollen." Go
here
for a slide show of photos of this bout taken by Mike Harris.
Dobbs was a late replacement for Marianne Chubirka. Moreno improved to 9-1-0 (3
KOs).
On September 14, 2006 at the HP Pavilion in San Jose, California,
Kelsey Jeffries (118¾ lbs) of Gilroy, California,
stopped Stephanie (116½ lbs) by TKO at 1:09 in the fourth round. Jeffries took
control of the fight from the start, repeatedly backing Dobbs into the ropes and
using an effective jab to land several shots. Midway through the second round,
the Road Warrior connected on a solid blow to Dobbs' head, and moments later
landed three more punches to her retreating opponent's body. "The body shots,
after I found out where I needed to put 'em, were working well," said
Jeffries, "right hands ... everything was actually landing really well."
Dobbs, who took the fight on just four days' notice, had run out of gas by the third round, but gamely hung on despite
taking steady punishment. Kelsey Jeffries improved to 35-9-1 (3 KO's) with the
win.
On January 26, 2007 at Million Dollar Elm Casino in
Tulsa, Oklahoma, Stephanie (115 lbs) won by a four-round unanimous decision over
pro debuter Treasure Saunders (115 lbs), also of Moore, Oklahoma.
Hollie Dunaway vs Stephanie Dobbs in 2007
© Copyrighted photo by Alan Messick
On February 22, 2007 at the Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino in
Lemoore, California, Hollie Dunaway
(109 lbs) of van Buren, Arkansas won a
six-round unanimous (60-54,60-54,60-54) decision over Stephanie (107¾ lbs).
Hollie improved to 18-4-0 (10 KO's) with the win while Dobbs fell to
22-25-4 (13 KO's).
(For
more photos of this
fight by Alan Messick, see Photo Gallery #417
on the WBAN Records Member Site).
On March 16, 2007 at The
Factory in Franklin, Tennessee
Stephanie won a six-round unanimous (60-54,60-54,59-55)
decision over Natasha Wilburn of Atlanta, Georgia. Dobbs progressed to
23-25-4 (13 KOs) while
Wilburn fell to 1-16-0 (0 KOs).
On April 18, 2007 at Clifford Park in New
Providence, Bahamas, Stephanie (111 lbs) won a four-round unanimous decision in
a rematch with Treasure Saunders (114 lbs). Stephanie improved to
24-25-4 (13 KOs) while Saunders fell to 0-2-0 (0 KOs).
On May 10, 2007 at the Crowne Plaza Hotel in Tulsa, Oklahoma,
Terri Moss
(103 lbs) of Athens, Georgia won a 10-round split (93-97,92-98,99-91) decision over
Stephanie
(103 lbs) for the vacant WIBF Strawweight title.
“She ran and I came after her,” Dobbs
told
her local newspaper. “I missed a lot of
punches, but I threw three times as many. She would run and use her
jab. I felt like I landed the bigger, harder shots. She never snapped
my head back like I did hers. She was tired in the final rounds and I
was getting stronger. I felt really good.”. Terri Moss told me:
"Stephanie has really improved. She looked like a little
force to be reckoned with in there. I really had to stay on my toes,
literally. The jab was the winning factor for me, that and constantly
turning her. It was a well-skilled entertaining female fight. I really
hope Stephanie gets a title soon ... she deserves it." Moss,
at 41, improved her record to 8-9-0 (2 KOs).
On July 13, 2007 at Million Dollar Elm Casino in
Tulsa, Oklahoma 35-year-old Nancy Bonilla (109 lbs) of Camuy, Puerto Rico, won
a four-round unanimous decision over Stephanie (110 lbs).
Dobbs told WBAN that she was disappointed
because the two got tangled up in the first round, and Dobbs twisted her left
ankle. Like many of the tough veterans in the sport, she continued to fight,
but was unable to fight 100 percent. Dobbs told WBAN
"I know the result of my fight with
Nancy was kinda shocking. We got tangled up in the first round and I twisted my
left ankle and sprained it badly. It is all swollen this morning and I can
barely get around on it. Last night I thought it was just twisted and didn't
want to quit (you know me), fighting in my home state and in the first round!
But, I couldn't go after her like I wanted or get set and step into my
punches. As the fight went on, I could barely walk. We have already discussed
a rematch." Dobbs fell to 24-27-4 (13 KOs)
while Bonilla improved to 3-5-0 (1 KOs).
On April 11, 2008 Team Dobbs notified WBAN that "Stephanie
has petitioned the Guinness Book of World Records to be listed in their book as
having the most professional bouts of any woman boxer in history".
(At the time, Dobb's W-L-D record
according to WBAN's database was 24-27-4, not counting two exhibition bouts,
while Regina Halmich had retired with a 54-1-1 record and Christy Martin's
record was 47-5-2.)
On May 8, 2008 at the Crown
Plaza Hotel in Tulsa, Oklahoma
Stephanie (116
lbs) TKO'd Salina Jordan (116
lbs) at 1:46
in the second round of a six-rounder. Jordan fell to
2-4 (1 KO).
On October 8, 2009 at Paradise City in Oklahoma
City, Oklahoma
Stephanie (121 lbs) returned to the ring and won a four-round unanimous (40-36,40-37,40-36)
decision over Jessica Mohs (131 lbs) of Oklahoma City. With this bout, Dobbs set
a new world record for total number of bouts by a pro female boxer. Mohs fell to
7-22-2 (2 KO's) while Dobbs extended her pro record to 26-27-4 (14 KOs).
Dobbs had been sidelined while she underwent physical therapy for a training
injury and is now trained by Terry Washington. She says she looks forward to
getting back to her busy pace.
"This sport isn't made for quitters", says Dobbs. "If you can't bear
the indignity of losing, then you also can't fully appreciate the thrill of
victory. Some fighters have taken the easy road to the top, and women's boxing
has suffered as a consequence. To them I say, stop worrying about protecting
your record and prove that you are the best. If you lose, work harder for the
next fight."
 Other
Stephanie Dobbs links
To check out fight reports, complete up-to-date boxing records, with huge
digital photos you can go to the
WBAN Records Member Site
Page last updated:
Sunday November 05, 2017 |
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