Monday 9 April 2012
Noemi Bosques: "I'm ready to accomplish big things"
Noemi Bosques: “I’m ready to accomplish big things”
Ringnews24.com: You were meant to make your pro debut on March 2 but the fight was cancelled on the night of the event. How disappointed were you?
Noemi Bosques: Oh man! Disappointment falls short of how I felt. But, I am a firm believer of everything happening for a reason, so even though the fight didn’t take place I wasn’t upset too long. So, it’s a shame but it’s okay.
Ringnews24.com: Do you know if the fight will be rescheduled?
Noemi Bosques: Absolutely, there are two dates at the moment. It looks like it will be either the last weekend in April or the last weekend of May. I’m not exactly sure but I will have something going on soon though.
Ringnews24.com: What are your plans for the rest of 2012?
Noemi Bosques: Ideally, I would like to have four or five fights. But, being a lady boxer the reality is it would take a miracle for that to happen. I’d like to have four or five fights but I think I’ll probably end up having two or three fights.
Ringnews24.com: There does seem to be a shortage of quality opponents in women’s boxing right now and so that must make it hard to find top opponents?
Noemi Bosques: Not yet, that’s true. But, with the Olympics coming up and women debuting there I think we’re going to see a big rise in interest in people wanting to watch women’s boxing and women wanting to get involved in the sport as well. I’m really looking forward to the next few years. I think it will be busy, not only for myself but for all the girls coming into boxing.
Ringnews24.com: How would you describe your boxing style to fans that may not have seen you fight?
Noemi Bosques: Well, I’ve noticed watching my videos I don’t have one style so to speak. My favourite style of boxing is to box and use my skill and technique. I love to use the art of boxing, coming from behind the jab, double jab, and pivot, throw the next combination that’s supposed to follow and so on. But, I have seen some videos of myself where in order to win I’ve had to resort to a more aggressive style of boxing or you know sometimes you just have to brawl. Sometimes there are fights where I’ll start off being technical with a lot of jabs but it will end up with being a busy punching game.
Ringnews24.com: What weight do you fight at?
Noemi Bosques: I’ll fight anywhere from flyweight to bantamweight. I like how I feel most at about 114-115 lbs. I can get pretty low. I had to do it for the Olympics qualifiers where I had to get down to 112lbs for almost every tournament.
Ringnews24.com: Who is your current trainer?
Noemi Bosques: I’ve worked with a couple of trainers in the last few years. Sherman Henson from Legends Boxing Club throughout my amateur career and now as a pro. He likes me to box, stay on my toes, move a lot and use angles. I’ve also worked with Jimmy McLoughlin who is a top trainer in Florida.
Ringnews24.com: You had a successful amateur career. Can you tell us about it?
Noemi Bosques: In my first year fighting, I fought Tiffany Connell, who is a really good kickboxer and MMA fighter. She was really tough and that was my first fight. I was ranked number one by the Sunshine state games in Florida. A year later I went to the Ringside World tournament and was Bronze medallist. I was ranked Bronze medallist for the National Pal too. I was ranked number one in Florida and number one in the region for two years in a row. I also ranked top ten in the nation for two years in a row. I’d say they were my biggest accomplishments at amateur level.
Ringnews24.com: How disappointed were you to not make the London Olympics?
Noemi Bosques: There were three qualifiers: The one in Colorado Springs, the National Pals and the National Golden Gloves. The ones who I had lost to at previous tournaments had already made it. They were already on the trials. So I knew at that last qualifier which was the National Golden Gloves I’d be able to make it. I’d have the best chance ever of making it because those who had beaten me before weren’t there. But, my brother, my beautiful brother, picks that very same week to get married.
Ringnews24.com: So you chose the wedding over the Golden Gloves?
Noemi Bosques: Yes, I felt like I had to be there because I’ve sacrificed a lot already for this boxing game. I’ve missed out on time with my family and important events. So I chose my family and I’m glad I did. The only frustrating thing was that when I saw the girls who had won in that last qualifier, I felt like I could have made it. But I don’t have any regrets, the wedding was so beautiful.
Ringnews24.com: Does that make you more determined to succeed as a professional?
Noemi Bosques: Yeah, you could say that. I already have that mentality anyway. I mean I’ve already been up against the best already in the amateur game and I did well. I feel like I can definitely be one of the top names in the pro game, I know I can be. I’ve been in this game long enough to know what I need to do and I’m ready to do it.
Ringnews24.com: What are the main differences between being an amateur and a professional boxer in your opinion?
Noemi Bosques: In my opinion, as an amateur the objective is to touch and move, touch and move, the whole entire time. Also for the most experienced amateurs who fight at national tournaments, for example, you have to manipulate the style in the ring to where you position yourself to fight so that the judges can see what you’re doing. It’s not just a fight between you and your opponent but also almost like a fight between you and the judges because you have two on one side and three other judges on the other three corners. So in order to be a successful amateur boxer you have to know how to position yourself in the ring to give these two judges the best view of what you’re doing in the ring. Sometimes fights are only about one or two points difference so you really need to make sure the judges see what you’re doing. Whereas the pro game it’s more like you’re just trying to knock this guy out. You use a lot more power and you don’t wear the headgear so you know the knockout is more likely to come.
Ringnews24.com: So, amateurs make a determined effort to position themselves in the ring in order to give judges the best view?
Noemi Bosques: The smarter ones do, unless you know for a fact that you can knock your opponent out. For example, in the finals and semi finals every punch counts so you want to make sure judges see everything you do. When I was fighting as an amateur, at least three judges had to push down on their button within about one second of each other for a punch to be counted so you really want to make sure judges see everything you do.
Ringnews24.com: The USA amateur scene has been on the slide in recent years, producing just one Gold medallist in Andre Ward, while many other countries seem to be thriving at amateur level. Do you have any opinions as to why?
Noemi Bosques: Well, funding is really poor right now. To go to the nationals you had to pay out of your pocket. If you won your state tournament, at least in my state, they would pay for your plane ticket but you had to pay for your room, pay for your food and so on. And these are kids we’re talking about like 18, 19 or 20 years old and some are from poor families. It’s hard to get the money. There also seems to be a lack of support for amateur boxing. It’s like people are just told to turn pro as soon as possible. I really wanted the experience from amateur boxing and think it’s helped me a lot.
Ringnews24.com: What made you want to take up boxing?
Noemi Bosques: My father used to do it when I was younger and we used to play fight and wrestle in the house. Also, growing up in the neighbourhood, I used to play outside with the boys a lot and we’d put on boxing gloves and beat on each other and I really enjoyed it for some odd reason.
Ringnews24.com: Have people been generally supportive of your choice of career?
Noemi Bosques: Absolutely. Women’s boxing is still kind of rare and growing so when I first tell people I’m a boxer they seem a little surprised and don’t believe me. But, then they’re really supportive, like they’ll ask me for my number and give me theirs so I can let them know when I’m next fighting. They say they can’t believe I get in that ring and fight and tell me they want to be there to support me and they’ve kept their word and been there.
Ringnews24.com: Do you think there is still a stigma attached to women boxing or do you think the public are a lot more receptive to seeing women in the ring now?
Noemi Bosques: Oh yeah, sure. People will say things like boxing isn’t a woman’s sport and things like that. One example is someone like trainer Dan Birmingham. He isn’t at all supportive of women’s boxing. He doesn’t think a woman’s place is in the ring. I kind of understand his view because he sees women as being precious and as being mothers, for example. Also, a few family members have asked me like why don’t I want to be a lawyer or so many other things I could do and instead get my face beaten in. That’s a popular one actually.
Ringnews24.com: What is your opinion of women’s boxing?
Noemi Bosques: I’m really excited about it and not just boxing but also MMA or any other combat sport. Any sport at all in fact. For so many years women weren’t allowed to participate and they had to do other things like mend clothes, make dinner, stay at home or whatever. I think this is a big turning point for women’s boxing, especially with the Olympics opening up to women’s boxing. I feel like women are now breaking boundaries which have been around for many centuries. Women can now do anything and still be a woman and they’re happy doing it and so am I.
Ringnews24.com: This year will be a big year for women’s amateur boxing with it debuting at the Olympics in London. Do you think women’s boxing will now continue to grow at both amateur and professional level?
Noemi Bosques: Definitely. It’s already happening now. Girls are seeing these women fighting in boxing and MMA and seeing the sport grow and seeing what are powerful women. I see it around me too. Girls will ask me where I train, will want to go work out with me, they see these pictures of fights and they’re intrigued by it. I think with women’s boxing at the Olympics there’s going to be a big rise in interest in younger girls. Also, coaches are now going to be more interested in helping women develop as boxers.
Ringnews24.com: What advice would you give to a girl or woman thinking of taking up boxing?
Noemi Bosques: I’d definitely tell her to make sure she’s doing it because she really wants to. It’s not an easy sport and you don’t make a lot of money. It’s not only physically hard but also the business side is very corrupt. A lot of these fighters are genuinely really nice people and they are people who enjoy the fight game and feel like they need to do it to support their families and make money. But you really need to genuinely want to do it because you will find promoters and managers who prey on that sort of mentality. Even when you’re winning it can be a battle. It’s a tough sport to be in.
Ringnews24.com: Who do you think is the best woman boxer right now?
Noemi Bosques: There are quite a few who I really like to watch. Susi Kentikian from Germany. I believe she’s 24 and has a record of 29-0 and 16 stoppages and she’s like my size, she fights at flyweight. She’s this tiny little thing with a great record and is really pretty outside of the ring but when she gets into the ring she’s a beast. I love her style. I’m a big fan. I also really like Ina Menzer. She’s one of my favourites. Jeannine Garside who defeated Ina Menzer is also another great fighter. She’s a real tough girl too. Chevelle Hallback is another one of my favourites. Ada Velez is another great fighter. She recently won another World title at the age of 40. Layla McCarter is another really good fighter.
Ringnews24.com: Do you watch boxing away from the ring? Which fighters do you like watching?
Noemi Bosques: I do. I watch quite a lot of boxing on Youtube. I really like watching Floyd Mayweather fights, especially his win over Marquez. He’s one of my favourites. Layla McCarter is one of my favourites to watch and I like Miguel Cotto and Felix Trinidad. I really liked Joe Calzaghe too. He could change his style according to who he was fighting. His fight against Bernard Hopkins is one of my favourites. Hopkins is a tough fighter to fight because he’s so intelligent but Calzaghe figured him out and then found a way to beat him.
Ringnews24.com: Would you like to say anything to say to your fans?
Noemi Bosques: I really appreciate the support more than anything. It means a lot to me. As a woman fighter the negativity can bring us down a little bit but there’s always that one message or one quote from a fan who you may not even know that really makes me smile and reminds me why I’m doing this. I’m really appreciative of the support. Keep your eye on me. I’m ready to do big things.
Ringnews24.com: Thanks for the interview Noemi and best of luck in your career.
http://www.ringnews24.com/index.php/boxing-news/interviews/49244-noemi-bosques-interview-im-ready-to-accomplish-big-things.html
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