A Q&A with Sumya Anani
by Jack Dunne (August 23, 2003)
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Also Read : Part 1 Part 2
Jack Dunne concludes his conversation with Sumya Anani by discussing Laila Ali, Christy Martin, Lucia Rijker, and Mia St. John - and no punches are pulled by the "Island Girl". The writer and fighter also analyze tonight's big fight, and Dunne has some parting words on women's boxing.
Jack
Dunne: Lucia Rijker has often had trouble getting fights and when she did,
she was often bumped off cards in favor of fighters like St. John.
Veronica Simmons, a six-time New York Golden Gloves Champion, has had
fights cancelled by opposing managers after they found out 'who she was'.
Is having too-much talent a liability in women's boxing?
Sumya Anani: I think so… (Pause)
JD: And have you ever been through anything like this?
SA: Yeah, I have a hard time getting fights all the time. But you know, Lucia Rijker, I don't know about her having the hard time getting fights. Maybe at one point, years ago, but the last couple of years? She fought Shakurah Witherspoon who was like 9 and 26, I mean like come on! She could have got me; and there are plenty of other girls who would have fought her.
You look at the names out there. There is Christy Martin, who IS a good fighter, Mia St. John who only got attention after she posed nude and Laila Ali because she is Muhammad Ali's daughter.
It seems right now the sport is kind of in this state where (long pause) I don't really want to say it but for example, when Christy got onto the cover of Sports Illustrated and women's boxing really started to take off; her conscious didn't push her to fight legitimate contenders. She was content with fighting for Don King; she was making all that money so she decided why take any risks of losing?
Martin didn't want to lose her little nest egg. She was happy where she was at; she liked being the center of attention. She said many times that she was not in it for anything but herself, she wasn't in it for the sport, not in it to promote anything. By Martin's not fighting legitimate contenders, I think that was the point where women's boxing started to go down hill, she hurt it. People were watching the sport and she had many missed chances after that and before that. Like I said, she wouldn't step up.
JD: You have to
admit that Martin is stepping up in taking on Ali. Laila may not be the
'ol' man' but she is going to dwarf Martin.
SA: I know but again, that's money. She is going to make a lot of money.
JD: That is true and I am sure it is the
reason she fought St. John. Getting back to Rijker, WBAN recently posted a
poll of the ten most desirable match-ups in women's boxing. You against
Rijker came in at #2. What are your thoughts about that?
SA: I am ready to fight, I think it would be great. I think Rijker and I should promote this fight as "the girl who beat Christy Martin versus the girl Martin was too scared to fight".
JD:
Would you face Rijker for even money?
SA: YES!
JD: The question of
who the best female fighter in the world today is one of pure speculation,
it depends upon what pundit you ask. A contest between you and Rijker
would answer that question hands down? Would having a TRUE legitimate #1
fighter in the sport force people to look at the sport in a different
way?
SA: This is what we need, look at men's boxing. I think one person can legitimize the sport if they fight the best in the sport. But then it's one girl; it would be her and the top fighters that she fights. It will require the effort of many women to really lift the sport. And the best need to fight the best, period.
Right now, people access the sport based on what they see on television and unfortunately networks rarely air the real championship fights. For example, Mia St. John is always in the news. I was in California for an ESPN Friday Night Fights, sitting ringside and I was listening to people talking behind me. They didn't know who I was. I was eavesdropping and they were talking about Mia.
Now Mia isn't the worst fighter in the world, but she's not the best either. These fans were basically assessing the state of the sport based on Mia because she is who they see on television. For women's boxing to become mainstream people need to see the girls who can really fight... the true champions. I am not saying that there isn't a place for Mia because there is and it's not that she shouldn't be given television exposure, but there needs to be more ample exposure given to the women that ARE the true champions as well.
JD: Another
bothersome difference between men and women's boxing is than a male
fighter, no mater what, sooner or later is going to get some exposure or
get a shot if his talent justifies it. It may not come easy but men don't
get buried as easily as a woman fighter can.
SA: Yeah, I know.
JD: When you first heard about the 'famous daughters,' you believed it would be great for the sport. "I used to think that any attention any women got was good for us all". You don't believe that anymore, why?
SA: I think that Laila is good for the sport because she is learning how to fight. But at first I was like oh great (sigh) I didn't know if they would stick around. There was media frenzy over their very first fights and of course the media was going to be interested but when fans look at that and think they are seeing women's boxing. They haven't seen the champions, the very good fighters. Lets say that you go to a card and see a dumpy man's fight, you still know that there is Roy Jones, Lennox Lewis, Oscar De La Hoya and other great fighters.
Women's boxing doesn't get attention comparable to men's boxing. When people see women with undeveloped skills they immediately assume "That's women's boxing?" They get turned away and leave with that negative idea in their heads. They don't understand that in women's boxing, there are different degrees of skills. They just assume they are seeing the best.
More exposure must be given to the girls who have real skills and have paid the price.
JD: What do you think about her fight between
Laila Ali and Christy Martin?
SA: Well, I don't know… (Long pause)
JD: Is it a good
idea? Is it a bad idea?
SA: No, it's a bad idea. They're not in the same weight class.
JD: Nor are they very close.
SA: And Laila isn't coming down for Christy. I don't think it is a good idea. I think it is what it is. It is two of the biggest names in the sport who are going after a big payday on the premises that a lot of people think they are the two best in the world.
JD:
You mentioned the weight discrepancy; that is a concern of mine as well.
Martin is going to be giving up 20 or more of lbs. of real weight to Ali.
Could Christy get hurt in this fight?
SA: I think that Christy will go in around 145-150 so I am expecting that it will be about a 10 to 15-pound difference, not 20-25.
JD: Laila, for the most part, tips in at around 165.
SA: They are meeting at 162. Laila will probably be at 165 for the fight and Christy around 150. I think at this point Christy has more skills, she has been at it longer so I don't think that she is going to get "hurt", I don't know but I don't think. I think she will be a little smarter, she knows that Ali really outweighs her.
JD: Bottom line is that gender is not an
issue, this fight is the pairing of a welterweight against a super
middleweight. It sets a bad and very dangerous precedent for women's
boxing. It sends the message to other women; this is what it takes to make
a payday. This is a dangerous sport. What are your thoughts on
that?
SA: I think that Christy knows that she can't clean her own division out so she has decided to go after names. Laila Ali should fight Anne Wolfe; Christy Martin should fight Lucia Rijker or me or get out!
Bad precedent? Yeah, I would agree with you.
JD: Thank you for your time Sumya. All the best to you!
SA: Thank you Jack.
Though no two fighters are the same, all have some traits that are similar. Some of the more obvious traits include the competitive fire and bravery that often times exceed the point of reckless abandon. "You have to be wired differently to do this. We are in a crazy business" is how one well-known fighter recently described it to me. True, and that's why we the fans watch.
While many promoters have simply washed their hands of the issue, choosing to not involve themselves with women's boxing; those who do promote the sport can learn a lot about what it will take to elevate the sport from its own practitioners -- if they are smart enough to listen and have a basic historical knowledge of men's boxing.
A welterweight contest between two enormously popular and undefeated champions was called "The Fight of the Millennium" by an advertisement campaign, only to produce a disappointing performance and outcome. It was two comparatively little known jr. welterweights having a combined total of nearly 20 losses that electrified legions of fans while leaving a forever lasting mark on the history of the sport just a few years later.
In February of 2000, Arturo Gatti and Joey Gamache faced off in a contest noteworthy for several reasons. First being Gatti's incredible 19-pounds-weight advantage over his scale weight of 141 a day before. A middleweight sized Gatti later sending a dwarfed Joey Gamache out of the ring with his head taped to a stretcher after having suffered a concussion that laid him up in a hospital for seven days.
The earthquake New York suffered on February 26th, 2000 (later identified as Gamache's body bouncing off the ring apron) produced several aftershocks. One was the immediate ending of a distinguished fighter's career. Another was a negligence lawsuit filed by Gamache against the New York State Athletic Commission. Another was an immediate revisal of weigh in procedures. Another being the possibility Gamache may have suffered a permanent form of brain damage as a result.
The lesson of Gatti - Gamache learned by some who promote women's boxing today apparently never registered. Pairing a welterweight against a super middleweight is fine just so long as the name recognition tips the scale in a favorable direction.
For all parties involved; hopefully the stray bullet will be dodged in tonight's fight.
With little argument, Sumya Anani is one of the most talented and skilled fighters within the ranks of women's boxing today. There was no promotional machine behind her and the clothes stayed on. Born without the advantage of a boxing icon's last name, Sumya's talent and fighting ability are the sole reasons "The Island Girl" has elite recognition within the sport today. Proof yet again that it is the athletes who make up the sport, not the other way around.
Hopefully those who intend to promote women's boxing into the future will get the message sooner rather than later...
"Many of those talents remain dormant our whole
lives. What is it, we use only ten percent of our brain"? - Sumya
Anani.
For Questions or Comments
E-Mail Sumya Anani
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E-Mail Jack Dunne
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