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TVKO:
PAY-PER-VIEW
MADISON SQUARE GARDEN
NEW YORK - MAY 12, 2001
Christy Martin vs. Kathy Collins
Report by Sue TL Fox
Covering on scene: Lori Steinhorst
NEW YORK (May 13, 2001)
Last night, at the Madison Square Garden, TVKO presented a
night of boxing with a roaring crowd of 18,235 boxing
fans. The production was promoted by Don King
Promotions, TVKO, and Budweiser.
The first televised fight of
the night was the women's bout, featuring Christy "The
Coal Miner's Daughter" Martin, 144, 42-2-2 (31KO);
and her opponent, Kathy "Wildcat" Collins, 142 1/4,
14-1-1 (3KO), a four-times world champion. The fight was a
scheduled 10-round Jr. Welterweight bout.
Also, on the sidelines, Lucia Rijker was a commentator
for the first part of the Collins/Martin fight. Rijker
gave some interesting observations about her own career and
about women's boxing in general.
Up to this point in women's
boxing, Christy Martin has been the highest earning boxer in
the sport for women. It was reported that Martin would
bag a quarter of a million dollars for the fight
and Collins, would earn her largest payday of $65,000.
Both Martin and Collins are
married to their trainers. Martin is trained by Jim
Martin, and Collins is trained and managed by her husband,
Frankie G. Martin was dressed in her
traditional Ringside
pink and white trim boxing gear; Collins was in a "Wild
Cat" look with red and black, that has the same colors as
her official Boxing Website!
THE FIGHT
- Round 1
Both Martin and Collins came out throwing
jabs, feeling each other out. Martin threw a good straight right
hand. Both working conventionally behind the jab. Collins clipped Martin
with a good left hook.
Martin connected with a hard right to Collins head toward the end of the
round. Rijker, who was asked
by another commentator if Martin was fighting a little conservative.
Rijker said, "No, not at all, she takes her time to clock her
opponent with her right hand."
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After the first
round, and during the one-minute rest period, Rijker was asked by
TVKO commentator about her status in boxing: |
Commentator: Lucia, you
yourself have not had a professional prize fight since August of 1999?
Rijker: "That’s right".
Commentator: I am sure you still
regard yourself as active as ever, Right?
Lucia: I am always active in the
gym, I mean, I shot a movie last year for five months in Montreal,
which was really challenging physically, but much more as mental, which
got me even more ready for this big fight that I am looking at. Because It’s
all mental. Physically, for me it is a piece of cake. I’ve been
fit my whole life and since I was fifteen. So training is easy for me.
Commentator: So you would like to
fight the winner of this fight.
Rijker: I would like to fight
Christy.
Commentator: You would like to fight
Christy? (laughs)
Rijker. I would like to fight
Christy.
Commentator: So how confident are you that you are getting a shot
at?
Rijker: We are very close, talking
with Don King. Close to a deal. Maybe in December.
Round 2
Collins threw right hands and was
most effective with her left hook. Martin tagged Collins with
a good right hand. Martin was
trying to cut off the ring, and basically stalking Collins.
Round 3
Both fighters are throwing good
body shots, and commentators made some comments about women's
boxing, saying that this is one of the advancements they have seen with
today's women boxers is they are going to the body more. Collins landed a
left uppercut and two right hands. Martin countered with a sharp
counter-right to the head. Rijker commented that she would like to see
Collins commit to her punches more, and she goes on to say that Collins is
waiting too long, and needed to start sooner, and more aggressively.
Round 4
Martin threw some good power
shots. Collins countered effectively, but Martin was the aggressor. (At
the end of the round, Rijker was given a farewell and she was no longer
commentating.)
Round 5
Martin threw a body shot and
completely missed. Martin and Collins were fighting too much on the
outside. Martin started to
do more body shots, and she connected with a hard left, then following
with a right to Collins' head. Collins also
became more aggressive in the mid-part of the round, getting Martin on the
ropes at one point. Martin though was remaining focused, and dug to the
body of Collins.
Round 6 - 7
Collins' left eye was developing a
mouse. Martin was ducking and slipping inside, and there were some
good exchanges in these rounds. Martin continued to be more of the
aggressor with Collins moving effectively, punching and moving.
Round 8
The tempo slowed down slightly in
this round. Martin started to bled from the nose. At the end of
round 8, Martin raised her hands in victory, as she returned to her
corner.
Round 9
The action picked up again,
and Martin and Collins continue to jab, just a little to far away
from each other. But they were throwing punches at the same strength
as they did the first round. Martin stepped in with a hard left jab,
and Collins countered over the jab of Martin. Martin began winging shots
from both sides but not landing much. Collins got Martin on the ropes, and
the ref separated them. In Martin's corner, Jim told her,
"We need this round." Christy responded, "really?"
Round 10
Collins appeared to have a slight cut over
her left eye coming into the last and final round. Both fighters
came out and continue to throw combinations. Both Martin and Collins
fought toe-to-toe, but neither could land a
knockout blow. One news source on the scene said
that "Martin was tired. Twice during the round, she looked up at the
clock to see how much longer she had to fight."
SCORING INFORMATION
According to Compubox, the final punches
thrown, landed, and percentage of contact were as follows: Collins
threw 370 punches, landing 105, at a 28% percentage. Martin
threw 462, landed 174, at a 38% percentage.
Martin won by a majority decision:
95-95, 97-93, 98-92. Martin moves her record to 43-2-2 (31 KO), and
Collins record dropped to 14-2-1 (3KO). Judge Frank Lombardi scored
the fight a draw, 95-95, while Tom Kaczmarek had it 97-93 for Martin.
Judge Larry Hazzard Jr. scored it 98-92 for Martin.
Comments about the fight from
maxboxing.com-Doug Fischer wrote the following: "It wasn't
an all-out war, but Martin-Collins provided good sustained action for the
fans. Martin's technical dominance over Collins was impressive, and
Collins' courage under fire should also be commended. Collins answered
back with quick one-two combinations every time martin nailed her side
with those hay-maker left hooks. Judge Frank Lombardi scored it 95-95, but
was overruled by judges Tom Kaczmarek and Larry Hazzard Jr. who had it
97-93 and 98-92, respectively. MaxBoxing.com had for Martin, easy, 8
rounds to 2."
AFTER THE FIGHT
After the fight, Martin told
news sources that she thought that she had won every round, but that she
was a little concerned about falling victim of a hometown decision. Martin
went on to say, "I
knew she (Collins) was going to be there for the long haul," and
frankly, the only thing I was concerned with before the fight was that the
judges were not all from New York."
Collins' take on the fight was that she felt she had
won the fight. She is asking for a rematch. Collins said that
Martin was a good fighter but not the "hardest puncher" she had
ever faced.
MAIN EVENT OF THE NIGHT
Felix Trinidad proved beyond
a shadow of a doubt that he belongs in the Middleweight division.
Trinidad knocked Joppy down three times and stopped him at 2:25 of the
fifth round, and became the WBA middleweight champion.
Trinidad said, "'You guys saw tonight I'm a true middleweight. I beat
the best middleweight tonight, and I will beat Hopkins.''
PREVIOUS DAY
- WEIGH-IN
Photographs by
WBAN Photojournalist - Lori Steinhorst
NEW YORK (May 12) The weigh-in was
held at Bryant Park, and WBAN's reporter Lori Steinhorst had an
opportunity to meet up with Kathy Collins, Christy Martin, and
Denise Moraetes. Steinhorst said that Collins was very open
and friendly and looking forward to her fight with Martin. Martin
weighed in at 144 lbs., and Collins came in at 142 1/4. Apparently,
Don King was grooming a female amateur boxer Stephanie Jaramillo,
who is about 18 years old, and lives in New Mexico. Jaramillo
is about to turn pro, and King invited Jaramillo and her mother to
this event.
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