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6-foot-6 Vonda "All-American Girl" Ward (born
March 16, 1973) from Northfield, Ohio is a former NCAA basketball star
who now has her sights set on world title belts as a cruiserweight boxer.
Vonda was a standout athlete at Trinity High School in Cleveland, and was named Ohio prep girls' basketball Player of the
Year. She went on to play center for the University of Tennessee, consistently one of the top collegiate women's
basketball programs in the USA, from 1991 to 1995. She was selected for the 1993 US national team for the R. Williams
Jones Cup international competition, and later played pro basketball with the Colorado Xplosion in the now-defunct American Basketball League.
Ward returned to Ohio after the ABL folded saying that she was
"burned out on basketball", but she kept herself in shape by
working out. Her regimen including working the heavy bag at World's Gym in Macedonia, Ohio
where gym owner David Cueni noticed that she used a perfect boxer's jab while working the bag.
He asked trainer Lorenzo Scott to assess Ward's potential as a boxer. Scott, who
had been working with fighters for 28 years, thought enough of Ward to become her trainer while Cueni became
her boxing
manager.
Vonda made her pro boxing debut at 187 lbs
on January 15, 2000 in Laporte, Indiana, knocking out Faye Steffen (192 lbs) of Oneida, Wisconsin at 0:24 of the first round. Steffen fell
to 0-5 (her last four in a row by knockouts) and hasn't fought since.
 On February 29, 2000 at the Indiana State Fairground in
Indianapolis Vonda weighed in at 190 lbs and defeated debut fighter Mattie Brumley (5'5", 182 lbs) from Indianapolis by TKO at 1:20 of the first round in a scheduled four-rounder. A Women's Boxing Page correspondent told me that "Vonda is 190 lbs of solid muscle. She is a
delightful young lady that the audience loved. She has little body fat and is tremendously powerful. She said she is just
getting into boxing and has a lot to learn, but she will definitely be heard from in the female heavyweight division and
she has the kind of personality and attitude to .... contribute very positively to female boxing." Brumley was a last
minute substitute for former Laila Ali opponent Nicolyn Armstrong, who Ward would face in her next bout.
On March 11, 2000 at the National Guard Armory in Findlay, Ohio, Vonda (194 lbs) knocked
out Nicolyn Armstrong (188 lbs) of Indianapolis at 1:45 of the first round. Armstrong fell to 1-5 with her fifth straight KO loss
... four of these in the first round (Laila Ali took two rounds to put her away!)
On March 24, 2000 at the UAW Hall in Parma, Ohio, Vonda (191 lbs) won by a first-round KO over Lana Jack
(188 lbs) of
Kansas City, Missouri, a seven-time Toughwoman champion who was making her pro debut. A Women's Boxing Page
correspondent told me that "Jack came out swinging but was quickly decked by two left-right combinations from Ward.
Jack tried to get up quickly but the referee handed her an eight count. Jack went back to swinging wildly, way off balance
and actually fell to the canvas again. She got up again and continued to come right at Vonda while eating jabs and rights.
A good right put Jack down for the count 0:52 into the round."
On April 27, 2000 at Hammerstein Ballroom, Manhattan Center in New York City, Vonda (193 lbs) got an early scare when
she was knocked down in the first round by wild-swinging Genevia Buckhalter (174
lbs) of Columbus, Mississippi. Vonda rebounded
quickly, however, and began to find her range at the end of the first round. She
then wore Buckhalter down in the second round with her height and reach advantage. Buckhalter took two standing eight counts and a hammering against the ropes before the fight was
stopped at 1:22 in the second. The scrappy Buckhalter fell to 1-5-1 with her fifth straight loss.
On July 17, 2000 at Station Casino in St. Charles, Missouri, Vonda weighed in at 189 lbs and
TKO'd 35-year-old debut fighter Lisa Redding (239 lbs) of Anderson, Indiana at
0.:31 in the first round. Redding hasn't fought again.
On August 24, 2000 in Columbus, Ohio, Vonda weighed in at 190 lbs and won
by a TKO in the second round over Jeanine Tracy of Chicago.
Tracy, who had been boxing professionally since 1998, fell to 3-4 (3 KO).
On September 23, 2000 at Packard Music Hall in Warren, Ohio, Vonda won a TKO at 1:24 of the first round
over Sharon Thomas (6'2", 240 lbs), who was making her pro debut.
On October 19, 2000 at the Cosmopolitan in Wickliffe, Ohio, Vonda knocked out Marjorie Jones of Milwaukee, Wisconsin at
1:02 of the first round. Jones, whose previous bout had been a third-round TKO loss to Laila Ali, fell to 2-6-1 (2 KO).
On February 2, 2001 at the Ohio State Fairgrounds in Columbus, Ohio, Vonda (189 lbs) TKO'd previously unbeaten Kisha Snow (5'10", 226 lbs) of New York at 1:05 in the
fourth round in a bout seen live on ESPN2's Friday Night Fights. Snow's game plan was to wade in and hope to connect
early with a knockout punch. She began the fight charging at the taller Ward and throwing bombs but Ward was able to hold
her off with her jab or tie her up in the early rounds. "She was looking for the big overhand right, but every time I
threw a jab or just backed up,'' Ward said. As Snow began to tire by the end of the second round she became more reckless,
and Ward began to unload. Ward knocked Snow down in the third and referee Frank Garza stopped the bout when Ward clearly
got the upper hand and was landing clean shots half-way through the fourth and final round. Ward flopped on her back on the
canvas, and later told reporters "that was just pure elation ... I was just so excited!". Ward moved to 11-0, all by KO,
while Snow fell to 6-1.
On May 16, 2001 at Ameristar Casino in Kansas City, Missouri, Ward
won by a TKO of Carley Pesente
(216 lbs) at 1:08 of the second round. Pesented fell to 0-2 with the loss.
On February 22, 2002 at Jerome
Schottenstein Center in Columbus, Ohio, Vonda (185 lbs) remain undefeated with
13 straight KO's when she won by TKO over Gigi
Jackson (238 lbs) of Columbus at 1:48 in the fourth round. Jackson, making her pro
debut, was outboxed by Ward and had gone to the canvas 30 seconds into the
opening round. A local report said that the fight was "perhaps the most
entertaining fight of the nine held as part of ESPN’s Friday Night Fights."
Jackson’s trainer, Mike Johnson, said that it was just "inexperience", and that
when a boxer throws only one punch at a time, a boxer is not going to beat a
fighter like Ward. Ward initially weighed in at 179.5, and was asked to reweigh
after putting some weight on. Although the card was covered by ESPN2, this bout
was not aired.
On July 16, 2002 at Civic Center in Canton, Ohio, Vonda (190½ lbs) passed a big test against Monica
McGowan (195 lbs) from Rusk, Texas, as she advanced to 14-0-0 (13 KO) and earned the IBA Heavyweight title in her first pro bout to go the distance. McGowan
took the fight to Ward in the early going but and worked past Ward's jab with hard shots and plenty of aggression, but Ward
stepped up the pace and began to trade with the hard-hitting McGowan in the second. It was a brawl until the sixth, but
then both began to fade. Ward hung on better to get a unanimous decision at 99-91,98-92,98-92 as McGowan slipped to 6-3-0 (4 KO). Both gave it
their all in a first-rate tussle that may have been the best female heavyweight battle yet according to my correspondent.
On December 6, 2002 at Gund Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, Vonda retained the IBA heavyweight title when she won by a TKO
over Kathy Rivers
(6'0", 195½ lbs) of Woonsocket, Rhode Island at 1:41 in the eighth round. Ward got off to a slow start but began to
take over the fight after getting the better of a hard hitting slugfest in the fourth. As the fight went on, Rivers
couldn't do enough to negate Ward's reach and strength advantage as Ward pressed forward with a steady, if mechanical,
style. The fight ended with an exhausted Rivers cowering against the ropes as Ward fired a two-fisted barrage of leather
to her head. Rivers looked a little out of shape and overweight in a bout where she needed to stay busy and to use her
movement and ring experience to stay close and outwork the lanky and hard-hitting Ward. There were no knockdowns but
Rivers was clearly getting the worst of the action for several rounds before the stoppage. Rivers slipped to 13-3-1 (4
KO). The bout was carried live on ESPN2's Friday Night Fights.
Ward's purse
for her fight with Kathy Rivers has been reported as $20,000, or 10 per
cent of what Christy Martin expected to be paid for fighting
Mia St. John at the almost-empty Pontiac Silverdome
that same night. Live attendance
was 3,416.
On March 1, 2003 at Thomas and Mack Center in Las Vegas, Nevada, A late substitution for Valerie Mahfood pitted unbeaten
Martha Salazar (5'9", 230 lbs) of San Francisco against Vonda (6'6", 179 lbs).
Ward was
bloodied and seriously tested by Salazar in a four-rounder but she escaped with a (39-37,39-37,37-39) split on the
scorecards (the bout had been reduced from an expected six rounds to four rounds at the last moment). Salazar was stymied
by Ward's trademark jab at first, but her hefty looping (but well-timed) overhand rights were a big threat to the (usually)
steady and straight-punching Ward as the fight progressed. Ward took one of these rights on the temple near the end of the
third round and looked stunned. The burly Salazar stepped up the pressure in the final round and hurt Ward with several
more big rights, but Ward's control of the early rounds had earned her the decision on two cards. Ward had been training to
face Carlette Ewell and then Mahfood, who was unable to get away from her job as a prison guard in Texas.
"I was training
for someone about 175 pounds," said Ward, who got a 30-day suspension from the Nevada commission because she had trouble
walking after the bout. "I've got a lot to learn," said Ward. "Maybe we'll do a rematch." Despite being somewhat thick
around her midsection, Salazar moved well and had good timing and hand speed, and she might have pulled off the win over
the lanky and more athletic-looking Ward in a longer bout. Salazar slipped to 5-1-0 (0 KO).
On March 14, 2003 at Avalon Event Center in North Royalton, Ohio, Vonda
(182 lbs) advanced to 17-0-0 (15 KO)
with a TKO of unranked Jeanine Tracy (192 lbs) of Chicago at 1:12 of the third
round. Tracy fell to 3-7-0 (2 KO) with this loss.
On July 11, 2003 at Memorial Civic Center in Canton, Ohio,
Vonda (188 lbs) advanced to 18-0-0 (15 KO)
with a clear unanimous (99-91,98-92,97-93) ten-round decision over
Martha Salazar (5'9", 234 lbs) of San Francisco.
With her IBA Heavyweight title on the line, Ward controlled most of this rematch by boxing from
the outside while the shorter, heavier Salazar tried to work inside with overhand rights and
left hooks. Ward used her reach and jab to set up the early
action but Salazar began to get to her in the fifth, landing a series of punches to
the head with Ward against the ropes. After the fight, Ward admitted that she was in trouble in
the fifth, but she recovered her composure and went
on to control the late-round action. ``I could tell (Salazar) was tired. After I didn't go down,
I think that deflated her.'', said Ward.
Salazar fell to 6-2-0 (1 KO), both of her losses coming to Ward.
On May 8, 2004 before 5,000 fans at the Mississippi Coast Coliseum, in Biloxi, Mississippi,
Ann Wolfe of Waco, Texas
(5'9", 172 lbs) scored a spectacular first-round knockout over Vonda
(170 lbs) to win the vacant IBA Light Heavyweight (175 lb) world title.
Trainer Emanuel Steward had advised Wolfe to attack the much (nine inches)
taller Ward inside. Wolfe followed a vicious left hook to the body
with an overhand right that caught Vonda
squarely on the chin and snapped her head back midway through the opening round.
Ward fell to the canvas unconscious and lay there motionless
for several minutes while the ringside physician and
EMS technicians attended to her. She was removed from the ring
on a stretcher wearing a neck brace and being given oxygen
and was taken by ambulance to Gulf Coast Regional Medical Center for a CAT scan.
She was diagnosed with slight concussion and was kept overnight for observation.
Ward didn’t land a punch before being felled by Wolfe's right hand
for the KO at 1:08 into the fight. Ward fell to 18-1 (15 KOs) with the loss,
while Wolfe improved to 17-1 (10 KOs).
On December 10, 2004 at the Gund Arena in Cleveland, Ohio, Vonda (185 lbs) TKO'd
Canadian-born Marsha Valley of Los Angeles, California
at 1:47 into the fourth round of a scheduled
non-title10-rounder. Valley was knocked down twice in the round before the fight
was stopped. Ward used a constant jab effectively to set up power punches and
dominated Valley from the opening bell. In the fourth round, Ward landed a lead
left-overhand right combination to drop Valley for the first time. Valley beat
the count and continued to fight, but Ward quickly got her against the ropes
with a barrage of combinations. When Valley dropped to one knee, the referee
stopped the fight. Ward said she had known the end was near.
"I hit her with some hard shots," she said, "I could see it in her
eyes. I knew it was a matter of time. I used the jab for the first time in my
life." Valley fell to 10-10-4 (4 KO's).
On April 29, 2005 at the Wolstein Center in Cleveland, Ohio, Vonda (183 lbs) retained
her IBA Heavyweight title by stopping Elizabeth Kerin (178½ lbs) of Chicago in the second round. Vonda was knocked down by Kerin's first
right hand of the first round and struggled to get back to her feet, barely
beating the count. She looked unsteady for the rest of the round but recovered
well and began to land heavy combinations as she backed Kerin into her own
corner in the second. Kerin went down from the flurry of punches and referee
Earl Jewell stopped the fight at 1:33 in the round. Ward improved to 20-1 (17
KO's) with the win while Kerin fell to 3-4-1 (3 KO's).
On July 15, 2005 at the Gund Arena
in Cleveland, Ohio, Vonda (187 lbs) won the IBA World Cruiserweight belt when
she easily defeated Cassandra Geiggar (179 lbs) of Arkansas by a unanimous
(100-88) decision. Joe Maxse of the Cleveland Plain Dealer said that the
fight was nearly ended late in the seventh round when a series of punches forced
Geiggar to one knee, and she got up after the 8-count from referee Jim Villers.
Maxse added, "but that's about all the good you could say for her
underwhelming effort." Geiggar fell to 6-6-0 (6 KOs).
On February 10, 2007 at the Wolstein Center in
Cleveland, Ohio Vonda (182½ lbs) returned to the ring to win a majority
(97-93,97-93,95-95) decision over Martha Salazar
(234½ lbs) of San Francisco, and became the new WBC and WIBA Heavyweight
champion. Martha Salazar fell to 11-4-0 (3 KO's)
while Vonda improved to 22-1-0
(17 KOs).
On February 23, 2008 at Chapparells Community Center in Akron, OH,
Vonda won a clear unanimous (100-90,100-90,99-91) 10-round decision
over 5'8" Carlette Ewell of North Carolina. Vonda improved to 23-1 (17 KO's)
while Ewell fell to 12-6 (9 KO's).
Asked about her boxing career, Ward says: "I'm enjoying it. It's a new challenge. I'm learning something every day and it's fun. The training
is just so much more intense than any other sport I've ever participated in. I actually use boxing as part of my workout.
I'm a personal trainer so I use it then."
Ward credits legendary University of Tennessee basketball coach Pat Summitt with some of her success as a boxer.
"Coach Summitt instilled a mental and physical toughness in me and helped me develop a strong work ethic,'' Ward said.
"I don't
think anyone trains as hard as I do, and that always gives me an edge.''
Vonda Ward was inducted into the International Women's Boxing Hall of Fame in
2018.
Page last updated:
Sunday, 12 November 2023 |
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