On Friday the 13th of September, Puerto Rico’s Amanda Serrano (36-1-1-, 27 KOs) and Heather Hardy (22-0, 4 KOs) of Brooklyn, NY will compete in what will be one of the biggest fights in Women’s Boxing history. These two ladies will clash for Hardy’s WBO women’s featherweight championship on the biggest stage in sports at Madison Square Garden in New York.
As much as this fight between Hardy and Serrano is all about two undefeated fighters competing for a world championship (and it’s always about the two combatants), HARDY vs. SERRANO is bigger than any championship they can ever fight for.
HARDY vs. SERRANO carries significant weight, as it is a reflection of just how far Women’s Boxing has come and the continuous journey that lies ahead for Women’s Boxing.
Grammy Award-winning musical artist Drake said it best with the lyrics “Started from the bottom, now we’re here.” That is the story of Women’s Boxing, a once dying aspect of boxing has been reignited by fighters like Hardy, Serrano, Katie Taylor, Cecelia Braekhus, and Claressa Shields.
Women’s Boxing wasn’t even on the map until the 1990s. Pioneers like Christy Martin, Ann Wolfe, Mia St. John, Jackie Frazier-Lyle, and Laila Ali, the daughter of the legendary Muhammad Ali proved that women can fight hard, grueling fights, and can frequently produce more excitement then male fighters.
Women’s Boxing started phasing out in the 2000s simply because, the networks such as HBO, whose slogan was ‘The best fighters in the world fight here,’ were not interested in females fighting on their outlet. Also, promoters were unwilling to pay women as much as men to step into the ring. Although fighters like Martin and Ali were active and quite popular, they had trouble finding opponents. The money simply wasn’t there.
Heather Hardy, a single mother from Brooklyn, reignited Women’s Boxing when she won the NYC Golden Gloves in 2012 and became a Golden Gloves National Amateur Boxing champion. Hardy turned professional in the summer of 2012, the same year women were initially allowed to box in the Olympics. Since then, Hardy has amassed one of the most successful careers in Women’s Boxing history.
Hardy’s success reignited a trailblazing path for other female boxers to walk through. Amanda Serrano is trailblazing a path as well.
Arguably one of the greatest female athletes of all-time, as Serrano is the first female fighter to win a world title in seven different weight divisions. Serrano was awarded the Guinness World Book of Records certification at this year’s annual Puerto Rican Parade in New York. Serrano also has one of the highest knockout ratios in Women’s Boxing history, as 27 of her 36 victories have occurred by knockout.
While this fight between Hardy and Serrano, who both know each other well and use to spar earlier in their respective careers, means so much, a world title fight of his magnitude will lead to another discussion: Fair wages for female fighters.
HARDY vs. SERRANO (although it appears) will not be the main event, however, Hardy and Serrano would have already sold most of the tickets at the Garden’s Theater by the time Devin Haney challenges Zaur Abbullaev for the interim WBC lightweight championship in the main event. The Theater will be packed. DAZN will stream the fight live. However, Hardy and Serrano aren’t necessarily guaranteed money they deserve to make in a fight between two unbeaten fighters competing for a world championship on a huge stage.
In an article written by Kevin Lole for Yahoo Sports, it was reported that is expected to rake in anywhere from $50-$100K. In addition to sponsorships on her trunks and a %15 commission for tickets she sold. Serrano too has been selling blocks of tickets, as her purse isn’t necessarily set in stone.
According to Lole’s article, boxing promoter Lou DiBella, who promotes both Hardy and Serrano, has urged his fighters to ignite a campaign forcing the issue of equal wages amongst sexes.
“They [need to] all go out there and talk about wage equality,” DiBella said. “I would love to see equality, but that’s not happening anywhere in sports and that’s very difficult to fight against. So I am pushing for wage fairness. If a woman’s fight is able to rise to the level where it’s a co-feature of a card and it is getting a lot of the attention, then their purses should be on par with the average male world champion.”
Hardy and Serrano has had to switch to MMA to maximize earnings as female professional athletes. Serrano has had to reside with her sister Cindy, a former pro boxer, along with her husband Jordan Maldonado, who also trains Amanda. Hardy also trains amateurs and general clients out of Gleason’s Boxing gym, in addition to preparing for Serrano.
Women’s Boxing has secured another opportunity to reach another level with HARDY vs. SERRANO. Let’s just hope the years of hustling, hard work, dedication, and sacrifice made by both fighters will lead to greater risk-reward fruition for all of Women’s Boxing.
Walker on Boxing 