Women’s Ratings Update: Enriquez closes in on Alaniz and Esparza
Last week, the most important fight in the realm of women’s boxing took place in the loaded flyweight division, home of some of the best talents out there regardless of gender.
In this case, two of Mexico’s all-time best clashed in a rare contest between two top 5 fighters.
Kenia Enriquez came in rated as No. 3 by The Ring, and took on No. 5 Ibeth Zamora, a legend in her own right, in a battle for Mexican bragging rights.
As it turns out, youth had the day, and Enriquez dominated the veteran Zamora over 10 rounds to make her case for a higher rating.
Most of the panel felt that a jump to No. 2 was plenty, but there were plenty of those who felt Enriquez should be rated even higher.
“It was ridiculous how Enriquez was shelved (between) 2017-20,” said columnist Mark Jones. “Ibeth Zamora, a decade ago, was as good as any fight not named Cecilia Braekhus.”
Historian Malissa Smith added that “Boxing at range, the highly talented Kenia Enriquez executed a series of combinations in rapid succession, throwing jab, straight right tag-teamed punches before explosively hitting Zamora with successive upper cuts and left hooks. Enriquez also showed exquisite defensive skills as she circled away from Zamora’s attempts to pummel her with left hooks and crushing rights and effortlessly pushed off Zamora’s inside game,” while Boxeo con Lipstick’s Wildalys Figueras-Snow added that “I was pleased with what I saw. Leveraging her exceptional left hook and capitalizing on her long reach, she convincingly defeated Zamora.
Thus, Enriquez is our new No. 2 in the flyweight division.
“Two more impactful matches at 112 coming soon–Gabriela Fundora challenging (our now former No. 2) Arely Muciño next month for her IBF title, and the WBO-ordered rematch between Marlen Esparza and Celeste Alaniz. The flyweight division keeps getting more and more interesting,” added Christopher Benedict, highlighting the elite matchups that could shape the future of this division in the near future.
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