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Thursday, August 9, 2012

WealthTV secures the Live Telecast for the IBF North American Heavyweight Battle of Tomasz Adamek vs Travis Walker‏

WealthTV, the latest destination for boxing’s premier live events, Main Events & Ziggy Promotions, announced today that WealthTV has secured the live US television rights for the upcoming heavyweight battle between Tomasz “Goral” Adamek (46-2-0) and Travis “Freight Train” Walker (39-7-1) for the IBF North American Heavyweight Title.

The fight will originate in front of Adamek’s rabid fans at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. This will be Adamek’s ninth appearance at the “Pru Center”

Adamek of Gilowice, Poland is the former World Light Heavyweight and Cruiserweight champion and is widely regarded as the top Heavyweight not named Klitschko as he has amassed a record of 8-1 as a Heavyweight with signature wins over Former title challengers Andrew Golota, Chris Arreola, Michael Grant and most recently Eddie Chambers.

With a win over the battle tested Walker, Adamek will be right back in position at the top of the list to earn another shot at Heavyweight Supremacy.

Standing nearly 6’5” Walker of Houston, Texas is coming off a big TKO win over IBF Pan Pacific Title Holder and former world title challenger tough Australian Kali Meehan. Walker is ranked number-twelve by the IBF and a win over Adamek will catapult him to the top of the Heavyweight heap.

“This will be an exciting fight to watch. Adamek is rated 4th in the World and has tremendous talent and speed. Walker is recognized as one of the legitimate heavyweights in the US and has size and power and the winner will see himself in a major fight later in the year. We’re excited to feature this top-world rated match on WealthTV,” stated Charles Herring, president ofWealthTV.

“Once again Tomasz is testing himself against a ranked opponent”, said Kathy Duva, CEO of Main Events.

“The winner of this bout will be in the mix for a significant bout in the Heavyweight division. Walker knows that this is his big opportunity to position himself for another major fight”

WealthTV, demonstrating that it’s dedicated to becoming a powerhouse in world-class live professional boxing, will be featuring this world-class heavyweight bout live to its viewers across the United States. In July, WealthTV featured top heavyweight Tyson-Fury on the network. According to Robert Herring, CEO of WealthTV, “There’s an extra level of excitement with the heavyweight bouts and securing this strong event with the main event featuring two of the best heavyweights in the world is exactly what we want to deliver to our viewers.” WealthTV currently has a dozen additional professional bouts in the works for its subscribers.

WealthTV will begin airing the undercard bouts at 3 pm ET on Saturday, September 8th. The live telecast is available nationally on Verizon FiOS TV, channels 169 and 669 in HD, AT&T U-Verse TV, channels 470 and 1470 in HD, along with over 100 cable systems across the country.

♔EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess♔, See you at the Fights and Thank You for your time.EL Boxing Empress Online @ Twitter http://www.twitter.com/Keishamorrisey ©®™ 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 All photos other than specified by "EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess" Keisha Morrisey, for ♔Empire Morrisey Photo-Studios♔, KCKMT for Bloodline Boxing Communications Entertainment and ★Starlite★ Boxing's Sweetscience Magnews-Online Publication all rights reserved.

WealthTV secures Live Telecast for Twelve World-Class Boxing Events with Hennessy Sports and GYM Promotions

WealthTV secures Live Telecast for Twelve World-Class Boxing Events with Hennessy Sports and GYM Promotions

WealthTV hooks a combination of World-class Live Boxing Series for its Viewers

WealthTV, the latest destination for boxing’s premier live events, announced today that it has secured the live US television rights for an initial twelve world-class professional boxing events scheduled for 2012 and 2013 from Hennessy Sports and GYM Promotions. WealthTV will air live six select dates from GYM Promotions’ wildly popular boxing series “Fast and Furious”, featuring top rated fighters from across North American. In addition, WealthTV is schedule to air live an additional six dates with UK based Hennessy Sports from its “Next Generation” series.

WealthTV, demonstrating that it’s dedicated to becoming a powerhouse in world-class live professional boxing, is gearing up to showcase multiple fight cards each month. In July, WealthTV featured two live events. On July 7th the network featured top rated and undefeated UK heavyweight Tyson Fury against Vinny Maddalone, a Hennessy Sports event, to its US audience. A week later, WealthTV PPV featured Anthony Mundine v. Bronco McKart IBF North American Middleweight Championship representing the networks first live pay-per-view. According to Robert Herring, CEO of WealthTV, “We’re dedicated to featuring the best boxers from around the world for our viewers. As we ramp-up, we anticipate airing 20 to30 live events in 2013. Hennessy Sports is allowing us to deliver on that promise.

The “Fast and Furious” boxing series is scheduled to air on select Friday nights with the Hennessy Sports European series airing live on select Saturday afternoons. WealthTV and Hennessy Sports are scheduled to feature at least four live airings in 2012, including on September 21, October 12th, October 27th, and December 14th. WealthTV’s live telecasts are available nationally on Verizon FiOS TV, channels 169 and 669 in HD, AT&T U-Verse TV, channels 470 and 1470 in HD, along with over 100 cable systems across the country.

♔EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess♔, See you at the Fights and Thank You for your time.EL Boxing Empress Online @ Twitter http://www.twitter.com/Keishamorrisey ©®™ 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 All photos other than specified by "EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess" Keisha Morrisey, for ♔Empire Morrisey Photo-Studios♔, KCKMT for Bloodline Boxing Communications Entertainment and ★Starlite★ Boxing's Sweetscience Magnews-Online Publication all rights reserved.

Claressa Shields into final after sumptuous display‏

It was the Women's semi-finals during the afternoon session on the twelfth day of competition at the London 2012 Olympic Games. The ExCeL Arena was again packed full with an atmosphere unrivalled.

In the first Flyweight bout (51kg), AIBA World Champion Cancan Ren from China faced the American starlet Marlen Esparza. It was the orthodox 23-year-old USA boxer who looked to take the initiative, using the jab before throwing body shots but the Chinese top seed's quick counter-punching gave her a slender point advantage coming into the second round. The precise shots of the favourite once again saw her score vital point of the counter with her hand speed making the difference. A big right hand from the Chinese southpaw had Esparza on the back foot, however the diminutive American landed a couple of good hits at the end of the third to reduce her deficit to two points coming into the final round. Ren's reach advantage gave her the edge as she booked her place into Thursday's final with a 10:8 victory.


There was a huge cheer for the next two boxers as Chungneijang Mery Kom Hmangtechallenged Great Britain's AIBA World Championships silver medallist Nicola Adams in the second Flyweight (51kg) semi-final. Five-time AIBA World Pinweight (46kg) Champion Mery Kom tried hard but unfortunately could not cope with the height and poise of the local fighter. The 29-year-old Brit was clever and did not try to bully Kom, instead looking to make her reach count as she outpointed the Indian legend by a point in each of the four rounds to triumph 11:6 and book her place in the final to face Ren.


The loudest noise was reserved for the women's best pound for pound boxer Katie Taylor as she battled the 19-year-old rising star from Tajikistan Mavzuna Chorieva in the first of the Lightweight (60kg) semi-finals. The Irish legend was moving well, choosing her shots wisely against an opponent who was both tough and undaunted with facing the top seed and overwhelming favourite in the competition. Taylor, who looked in scintillating form in her previous bout, continued where she left off, using that jab before throwing a quality variation of shots to take the first two rounds. The 25-year-old orthodox Irishwoman had too much in her locker for the young Chorieva as she stepped it up another gear in the final two rounds to progress in style 17:9.


Brazil's Adriana Araujo and the second seed from Russia Sofya Ochigava then went to head-to-head to decide who would face Katie Talyor in the Lightweight (60kg) final. It began evenly with both boxers testing each other with the jab. Araujo tried to take the fight to her opponent but was met by stiff resistance and the points were shared in the first. The Russian southpaw's quality counter-punching made the difference in the second and third as she connected with some good hooks to take a four point lead going into the final round. Full of confidence, Ochigava was fighting with her gloves down, inviting her rival in before throwing some quick one-twos as the big left made the difference. The Russian ensuring she would challenge Taylor in the gold medal contest after winning 17:11.


In the first of the Middleweight (75kg) semi-finals, American teenage sensation Claressa Shields came up against Marina Volnova of Kazakhstan. It was fast and furious in the first round as the two went toe-to-toe, however it was the 17-year-old orthodox fighter from the USA who was landing the cleaner shots and she took the first round by two points. Shields was really stamping her authority on the bout in the second as a series of hard hooks hit their target and once against she claimed the round. In the third, a series of powerful right hands by the American had Volnova taking a standing eight count as Shields was now completely dominant. In the end, Shields was simply unstoppable as she stormed to a resounding 29:15 victory after an enthralling battle.


In the final bout of the afternoon session, Russian second seed Nadezda Torlpova met Jinzi Li of China in a contest that would see the winner then challenge Shields in the Middleweight (75kg) final. It was the Chinese orthodox 22-year-old who took the first round after the good use of the jab gave a slender point advantage. Torlpova reassessed her tactics and threw some good variation of punches in the second and third rounds to overturn the deficit. A huge left-right combination rocked Li and the Chinese boxer had to take a standing eight count and the 33-year-old two-time European Champion and 2010 World Champion from Russia confidently closed out the final stages to win 12:10.


The evening session will see the Men's Light Fly (46-49kg), Light Welter (64kg) and Light Heavyweights (81kg) battling it out in the quarter-finals.


♔EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess♔, See you at the Fights and Thank You for your time.EL Boxing Empress Online @ Twitter http://www.twitter.com/Keishamorrisey ©®™ 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 All photos other than specified by "EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess" Keisha Morrisey, for ♔Empire Morrisey Photo-Studios♔, KCKMT for Bloodline Boxing Communications Entertainment and ★Starlite★ Boxing's Sweetscience Magnews-Online Publication all rights reserved.

Claressa Shields Advances to the Gold Medal Bout While Marlen Esparza Claims Bronze‏

The final two U.S. competitors in Olympic boxing took the ring on Wednesday and it was a split decision for the pair. Flyweight Marlen Esparza (Houston, Texas) lost a 10-8 bout to reigning World Champion Cancan Ren of China while Claressa Shields (Flint, Mich.) won a dominant 29-15 victory over Kazakhstan’s Marina Volnova. Esparza will leave London with a bronze medal but Shields will vie for gold on Thursday.

After facing a towering two-time World Champion in her Olympic opener, Shields enjoyed a much easier day in her semifinal contest with Volnova. The power-punching teenager started landing heavy shots early in the bout, and held a 7-5 lead after the round. She continued to control the action in the second, boxing well off the ropes and getting the best of the exchanges and Shields enjoyed a 12-8 advantage at the midway mark of the bout. Yet it was the third round where Shields really began to impose her will. She landed every punch in the book, giving Volnova a standing eight count en route a 20-11 lead with one round remaining. Volnova had no answer for Shields in the fourth round as the 17-year-old continued to catch her with heavy shots, giving her another standing eight count. She continued her onslaught through the sound of the final bell and went on to win a 29-15 final decision. Shields victory earns her a berth in the championship bout where she will face Russia’s Nadezda Torlopova.

“She was going to try and come in and fight me, she didn’t have any other option. She couldn’t outbox me so she was going to come in and try to out-bang me. We already knew that and we came up with a game plan for it,” Shields said. “The game plan was basically to move to the right and jab and box her but she didn’t respect me when I did that so I turned it into a fun game and I started banging with her. I got the best of it, I was able to pick my shots, make her miss a lot and we were just in there fighting. It was fun though.”

Should she win tomorrow’s championship bout, Shields will be the first American boxer since Andre Ward to win Olympic gold and the first middleweight champion ever in women’s Olympic boxing.

Esparza faced a much more tactical and slow-paced bout with her Chinese opponent and the 23-year-old veteran planned well for her inactive opponent. The first round was contested at a very slow pace with Esparza looking to make Ren come forward and the Chinese boxer was up by a 3-2 margin after one. The trend continued in the second round as Esparza stayed disciplined and looked to bait Ren, but she trailed 7-4 after two. Esparza picked up the pace in the third round, still boxing in a tactical fashion with her awkward and frustrating opponent and she was able to knock one point off Ren’s advantage. She faced an 8-6 deficit as the final round began but wasn’t discouraged by the score. Esparza stayed focused, and set up strong right hand shots, while Ren refused to engage over the final two minutes. However it was Ren taking the decision, winning the bout by a 10-8 margin. Although the loss eliminates Esparza from the tournament, she still claims a bronze medal in the Olympic debut of women’s boxing.

“I thought I got away with it. I really thought that I landed, I guess maybe her punches are a little longer, a little easier to see. I have to watch the tape but I definitely thought that I got away with it. When I was only down by two, I thought, okay I can do that because I was starting to find my range. I should have shot off my breaks more but its hard with someone that constantly pulls back. She was frustrated, she was pissed because I wasn’t coming forward so that was part of the game plan and I thought I did everything that I could do.”

Shields will face Torlopova tomorrow at 5:15 p.m. London time (12:15 ET).

U.S. Results

112 lbs: Cancan Ren, CHN, dec. Marlen Esparza, Houston, Texas/USA, 10-8

165 lbs: Claressa Shields, Flint, Mich./USA dec. Marina Volnova, KAZ, 29-15

Marlen Esparza Quotes

“I can’t be angry about any medal at all but it wasn’t my goal. I did accomplish something here, it just wasn’t what I had in my head but any medal is a blessing at the Games.”

“We knew she wasn’t going to commit ever so the game plan was to not go forward so when I did, that’s when I got in trouble. When I did leap forward, she would catch me with those hooks. So when I didn’t follow the game plan was when I did get countered, but the point was to throw when she throws. In the beginning, it was just supposed to be one punch and see if she comes back with anything. I thought I got away with it so I can’t really change too much.”

“The third and fourth round was also the plan, I wasn’t really supposed to throw in the first or second. I was supposed to only wing it in the first and second and see what she does and find my range and then got closer in the third and fourth. I thought I got away with it in the last round because I really didn’t feel anything but I didn’t.”

“No her style is as boring to us as it is to everyone else. Everyone can’t stand it but it works so you can’t blame her.”

“This was my hardest loss because I thought I was gonna win. Usually, 99% of the time, when you get in the ring, you know if you’re gonna lose or if you’re gonna win and I definitely thought I was gonna win.”

“I hope that whatever I did was some type of limelight for what we can do (female boxers). I was hoping for a gold medal to have a little more concrete of a reason but I’m hoping that whatever we’re doing here, not just myself, but everyone else gives us more of a force to get in as a solid start.”

“I’m done, that was my last bout.”

“My body’s falling apart already. I’m in sports med about four hours a day.”

“I think for the women in the U.S., we’re very capable of competing in this sport. We’re very capable of competing with other countries so I think we’re doing very well for the three women that did come and hopefully it will give us a foot in the door, more than we already have.”

“I thought I got away with it, I wasn’t too nervous at the decision. I was gaining every round and I felt that my last round was my better round and I thought they were going to give me what I felt. I thought it was even or I was up by one and I figured if it was even, I would win on punch count. I was feeling really good about it and I could tell she was worried and her coach wasn’t so happy so I felt good until I heard the score and then I knew.”

“It (the Olympics) was definitely more than I expected, I played it in my mind a hundred times but it was way better than I ever thought. It was a big crowd, it was fun, it was beautiful so it definitely surpassed my expectations.”

“The worst part about it is that you imagine it in your mind so many times and to watch somebody else right in front of me feel and get and have what I feel like I worked my whole life for is just horrible but its just the way it worked out for me so there’s nothing I can do about it.”

“I plan to be really fat later on. I’m just going to watch boxing. I’m done. Maybe coaching later. I’m just going to go school and see what life is actually besides boxing.”

“It was definitely worth it. It didn’t play out exactly the way I wanted but besides getting a gold medal, I wouldn’t change anything.”

“Olympic medalist has a nice ring to it but the podium’s not going to be as fun as I thought it was going to be.”

“I’m a hard critic so I really don’t feel like I accomplished enough for us (female boxers). I had a lot of media so I figured if anyone was going to do it, it was going to be me.”

Claressa Shields Quotes

“I do that, they actually don’t like me on the ropes. I fight good off the ropes, they want me to stay in the middle of the ring but I’m good at fighting off the ropes.”

“It’s wonderful (knowing that I’m going to fight for the gold medal). I’m already thinking, is it really true? Am I really gonna fight for the gold tomorrow? I just think to myself, I’m not dreaming anymore, its real. I know I can beat anybody so it’s right there. I just have to grab it.”

“I didn’t know what they were saying but I saw in the second round he was doing this (makes jab motion) so I know he was telling me to use my jab. Use it, use it. I did that and it opened me up to a lot more combinations.”

“I think that’s the performance I wanted everyone to see. My performance the other day was okay. I was fighting a taller girl, I threw a lot of wide shots but this one. I was able to put my combinations together, land my clean, hard shots, punch straight. I was able to do a lot of things that people don’t see women doing.”

“I know I was faster than her before I got in the ring.”

“I’m not going to celebrate too early, people do that. They get excited that I won a bronze medal. I’m not going to do that. I have to make sure I stay focused. I think yesterday, I was with my coaches the whole day. We went out and had dinner. I ate some duck. We really just sat down and talked about all my mistakes from my first fight. He told me what he wanted me to do this fight.”

“When Errol lost last light, I felt kind of heavy. I was like ugh. It might be all on me and Marlen. It might me all on me. It’s all on me to get a gold medal. I can overcome all that because at the end of the day, I have to get in the ring and fight.”

“I’ll take on any task that has to do with women’s boxing so if that’s what’s asked me I’ll be the face of American women’s boxing.”

“I was a lot sharper than what I was. People were like you swing wide and fight like Rocky Balboa.”

“My favorite Rocky movie is when he beat the Russian. No, when he fought Mr. T. Mr. T is crazy but I feel like this fight, I showed my Sugar Ray Robinson. I like to call myself Baby Robinson because I feel like I fight like him. I did my thing today. Out of 1 through 10, I’d give myself an eight or nine.”

“Right now, I can’t imagine winning a gold medal. Not right now.”

“I like the way Sugar Ray Leonard fights too but Robinson is someone that I’ve looked up to forever. Whenever I’m stressed out or I have a bad day, I use it to calm myself down. I was watching Robinson vs. Jake LaMotta last night.”

“I was geeked up, I listened to slow music to calm me down and some crunk music to geek me up. I had to have confidence going in there. Whenever someone wants to bang with you, you can either say I’m not going to bang with this person, I’m going to let them beat me up or you can fight them and I got the best of her every round so I did pretty good. The first round, I didn’t like that. It was like we were trading and I’m supposed to be hitting her and she’s not supposed to be hitting me.”

♔EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess♔, See you at the Fights and Thank You for your time.EL Boxing Empress Online @ Twitter http://www.twitter.com/Keishamorrisey ©®™ 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011 All photos other than specified by "EL Boxing Empress & MMA Princess" Keisha Morrisey, for ♔Empire Morrisey Photo-Studios♔, KCKMT for Bloodline Boxing Communications Entertainment and ★Starlite★ Boxing's Sweetscience Magnews-Online Publication all rights reserved.

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Flyweight Marlen Esparza’s (Houston, Texas) decade-long journey in the boxing ring finally culminated in her debut at the 2012 Olympic Games on Monday

Flyweight Marlen Esparza’s (Houston, Texas) decade-long journey in the boxing ring finally culminated in her debut at the 2012 Olympic Games on Monday and the 23-year-old made sure it was a victorious one. The Houston native gave Team USA a much needed win a guaranteed herself at least a bronze medal with a 24-16 victory over Venezuela’s Karla Magliocco. Teenage sensation Claressa Shields(Flint, Mich.) followed two hours later with a comeback win over Sweden’s Anna Laurell to clinch a middleweight medal as well.

Esparza got off to a quick start in her bout, out-boxing Magliocco from the opening bell. Her early momentum gave Esparza an 8-4 lead after the first round. She continued to connect with her signature overhand right in the second round, evading the Venezuelan’s ongoing shots and extending her advantage to a 14-8 margin. Despite the referee stopping the bout numerous times to have the coach fix her hair, which was coming out of her headgear and the crowd booing her growing lead, Esparza stayed focused on the task at hand. She took a 19-12 lead into the final round and managed to avoid the charging Magliocco to win the 24-16 final decision. The victory guarantees Esparza at least a bronze medal and advances her to a semifinal match-up with reigning world champion Ren Cancan of China on Wednesday.

“It feels good, I feel really good about winning a medal. In the U.S., if it’s not gold, it’s not good enough so I’m trying to get a gold. That’s really what I want. I’ll be happy with whatever I get from this point because no matter what it is, it’s a blessing to get this far. But in my mind, I really am dying for a gold medal,” Esparza said.

She has been preparing for her rematch with Cancan, and hopes to keep her record of never losing twice to the same opponent in tact when she faces the reigning world champion on Wednesday.

“I’m ready for the next match. That’s the one I’ve been playing in my head a million times, over and over. That’s the definitely the one that I’m here for,” Esparza said. “It feels good to win a medal and I know that the USA needed it badly right now so I’m excited about that, but now it’s time to get what I came here for and that’s the next match.”

Shields continued the winning ways in her bout with two-time World Champion Laurell. The American teenager faced a large height deficit in her bout with Laurell, but that didn’t discourage Shields from throwing shots at her towering opponent. Yet it was Laurell who held a 4-2 lead after the first round. Shields began to cut the distance between the two of them in the second round, finding a home for her double jab, right hand combination and she cut her deficit to one at the halfway mark. She continued to find the mark in the third round, landing strong hooks and the bout went into the final round locked at 12-12. Shields simply wouldn’t be deterred in the final round, coming out firing strong shots. She rocked Laurell with a body shot, hook combination, giving the Swedish boxer a standing eight count.

Shields won by the round by a four-point margin, taking the bout by an 18-14 final score. As in Esparza’s case, the quarterfinal victory ensures Shields will win at least a bronze medal at the 2012 Olympic Games. She moves on to a semifinal bout with Kazakhstan’s Marina Volnovafollowing Volnova’s win over reigning World Champion Savannah Marshall in the bout prior to Shields’.

“In the first round, I didn’t want to rush her because that’s how I lost a fight previously. She was taller, I knew she wanted to outrun me and stay on the outside so I took it slow and I was down two going into the second round. In the second round, I was down by one and that’s when I sharpened up and started picking my shots,” Shields said. “In the third round, we were tied up 12-12, the only thing I was thinking was bite down. I was thinking, this is what you’ve been working on in training camp, staying calm and picking your shots. This is it, do it. I just told myself that I wasn’t going to let her get it from me the last round.”

Welterweight Errol Spence (Desoto, Texas) will compete in his quarterfinal contest on Tuesday at 10 p.m. London time (5 p.m. ET), in a bout with Russia’s Andrey Zamkovoy. Spence was reinstated in the competition following a U.S. protest of his bout with India’s Krishan Vikas.

U.S. Results

112 lbs: Marlen Esparza, Houston, Texas/USA dec. Karla Magliocco, VEN, 24-16

165 lbs: Claressa Shields, Flint, Mich./USA dec. Anna Laurell, SWE, 18-14

Marlen Esparza Quotes
“If you try to be first with someone who likes to throw punches, it’s just going to end badly for you so you try to let her throw first, counter, and then get out of the way.”

“I thought the crowd was going to freak me out a lot more than it did. I thought it was going to be like oh my gosh, all these people. What am I doing? I want to go home, but it was okay. Then they were booing a lot. That pissed me off a little bit so that helped. That was really all I was worried about because I’ve never been in front of a crowd like that. Everything happens for reason, if they had been way happier, it would have been worse for me. Since they were a little upset, it kind of gave me a lot more energy.”

“When I walked in and I realized that all those people didn’t freak me, it made me really happy and that’s why I was smiling walking to the ring.”

“I hope that the people in Houston were happy with what happened today. I’m just really happy that they supported me. I’ve been getting so much support from Houston, its crazy so I really appreciate it.”

“I’m happy with a bye because internationally, my brackets have been so hard. I get European Champion, former World Champion, reigning World Champion and then the finals. I’m really happy with the bye, I feel like God was like, ‘Okay, I’m going to give you a break this time Marlen’.”

“My hair is really thin, that’s why I braid it, so that doesn’t happen but it got pushed out in the back because the headgear is so tight and new. It kept pushing my hair down and it made it come out. My hair will come out of anything. It was distracting but I just kept pretending like it was okay because if you keep worrying about my hair, my hair, it messes with your mind and she was being too aggressive for me to think about anything else.”

“I think this tournament, they are looking for a little more of the professional style, which is different. Usually they like the amateur style, a lot of points, a lot of movement but it seems like if you’re really aggressive, they like it better. This tournament is kind of close to professional boxing.”

“I’m not planning to turn professional, I’m going to go to school so these are my last fights.”

“I’m not a slow starter luckily so I’m good at going right away. That’s why I win so much because I’m usually up in the first round and that helps me because I like to move versus go forward. I was faster too.”

“I’ve been practicing with left handers for a month so that (the right hand) just came out. I kept saying when she jumps in, I’m going to jab but I couldn’t control my body and boom there goes my right hand. So it wasn’t really on purpose, it was just habit because I’ve been practicing with left handers. Luckily it worked in my favor. I’m glad I didn’t have to use my jab first or I would have been having a hard time.”

“It’s not really one fight (to medal), it took like 50 fights to get here so I don’t really see it that way. I see that I got a definite blessing in the brackets and I think it was well deserved because my other brackets have been horrible. I know people are going to think that, but I deserved that bye and it took me a long time to get here.”

“I wasn’t as fast on my feet as I usually I am and I couldn’t jab and I love my jabs, but it’s something that I’m not really going to need after this point because I fight a left hander tomorrow.”

“We’re definitely going to stare at each other for half of the fight because if I go forward, it’s going to go downhill. If she goes forward, it’s going to go downhill so we’re definitely going to be looking at each other for half the fight.”

“I was working pads in the village and I saw Kobe, Carmelo and Lebron James yesterday. I didn’t really see them because I was focused but they stopped and said, ‘Can we take a picture?’ I stopped and saw all these famous people and I thought, I would have tried harder if I’d known it was you.”

Claressa Shields Quotes

“I had to keep myself calm, I didn’t want to be too overanxious so when I walked out, I was warm. At the end of the day, I’ve got go out there and fight. There’s no need to be overexcited. It was kind of like wow when I walked out.”

“I think a lot of men weren’t treated fairly but that’s just how it is. They had really close bouts and they had tough opponents so that’s how it played out.”

“That’s just how it is (guaranteeing a bronze medal with one win). This is the first Olympics for women’s boxing. There are 12 in each weight class, the men have up to 30 in a weight class because they have all these different qualifications for the men but there’s only one qualification for the women. They took the two best from each continent who placed at the World Championships so there’s 12 of us here. It will probably be better next Olympics but to me, it’s fair.

“I was happy to go to bed every day and wake up the next day and there’s was one less day to go (waiting to box). I got irritated, I watched six or seven straight guys lose from the USA and I wanted all of them to place. I wanted everyone to get a medal but I had to control my emotions. I never cried, I gave everyone some good words of encouragement and after that, I tried to stay focused on me. I just made sure I went to bed every night and woke up the next day, that was it.”

“Hopefully (in 50 years), women’s boxing will have 30 boxers in each weight class. I hope that they start treating us fairly. I think they want all the attention to be on the women and that’s why we are fighting separately from the men but at the same time, I think its only fair to mix us in because sometimes you want to see women and you want to see men. I don’t see why they have to separate us.”

“I really wanted to fight Savannah Marshall, she gave me my first loss. That’s something that has motivated me. If I win, I’ve got Savannah my next fight, but it didn’t work out like that. I have Kazakhstan next. I just have go watch film and dissect her.”

“There’s always room for improvement. Jason was proud, being at this level. We don’t think about scoring 30 or 40 points anymore, we just think about the win. I’m going to fix some stuff. I’ve got my day off, I’m going to sharpen up a little bit more. I got a little rust off, I haven’t fought since I lost. I’ve been in the ring sparring and stuff but that’s my first time in front of a huge crowd where people are going for me and against me. So now I get the rust off and I’ll fight better.”

“That girl was a tough opponent, she was really tall. Any tall fighter can beat any short fighter and any short fighter can beat any tall fighter but nine times out 10, you have to be a really good short fighter to beat somebody tall.”

“I feel that I can do better but I definitely feel like I don’t fight like a girl. I feel like I went out there and proved a point. I’m going to keep proving that point until I get to that gold medal.”

“I’m boxing in there. I just happen to hit hard, that’s how I was taught. I wasn’t taught to load up. If I was to load up on every punch, I would have been stupid tired in that last round and she would have won. I was just being sharp and I just happen to hit hard. I’ve been paying attention to the point system, I really have. I watched six guys from our team lose so I have been watching and trying to see, which round the judges are pushing the button the most in and for some reason, it’s the second round. I was really happy that I was only down by one after the second round. I really don’t think she was scoring a lot but sometimes they are just down there clicking.”

“My idols are Sugar Ray Leonard, Sugar Ray Robinson, Joe Louis and Tommy Hearns. I love those guys.”

“Jason sent a message through Coach Leverette. He said to stay calm, have fun and go out there and do what I do. He said all my hard work was done in the gym and now its time to have some fun and do what I’ve been waiting to do and that’s have a chance to perform and get my gold medal. I just went out there and at first I was being really cautious. I just had to figure her out, she’s a really tall fighter.”

“I have a strong determination not to lose. I feel like growing up, I lost so much, I just want to be a winner. I love boxing, I put all my time into boxing and I feel like I deserve to win. No one can control my destiny but me so I go in there and sometimes, I’m mad and sometimes I’m not mad. I just go in there and do my best.”

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