It was May 13, 2011. Seniesa Estrada made her pro debut before a few dozen boxing fans at the Chumash Casino Resort in Santa Ynez, California.

The dismal backdrop would become the norm through the early years of her career spent in gaming casinos, concert halls and theaters.

Nearly thirteen years later, Estrada (25-0, 9 knockouts) overcame multiple obstacles to become The Ring 105-pound champion. She is now one win from the undisputed championship.

Estrada will have to get past Yokasta Valle to achieve that goal this Friday night at the Desert Diamond Arena in Glendale, Arizona. Their scheduled ten-round grudge match between unified titlists has commanded more attention than the Oscar Valdez-Liam Wilson ESPN+ main event.

It speaks volumes to how far women’s boxing has come, and specifically Estrada’s journey to this point.

Her pound-for-pound run—currently No. 5—came under seven different promoters, and far too many nights spent before sparse crowds for paltry purses. The same could be said for Costa Rica’s Valle (30-2, 9 KOs), No. 1 at 105 and No. 9 pound-for-pound, and many other prominent female boxers who accepted any opportunity just to stay active or be lucky enough to sign a deal with a major promoter.

David Avila, a longtime writer based in Southern California who has long covered and is an expert in women’s boxing, knew Estrada would become successful in the pro game. Both Avila and Estrada grew up in East Los Angeles.

“I’ve known Seniesa since she was a teenager,” Avila told The Ring Tuesday. “She fought in the Golden Gloves (Tournament) and I read about her in the Los Angeles. She has the same trainer (Dean Santos) that worked with (former world titleholder) Sergio Mora. They train at the same gym. They have different styles, but they’re both athletic.

“When I saw her spar and fight, I knew she would give all her opponents a lot of trouble. I knew she had the stuff to be a world champion and a superstar. She had that quality in her. Seniesa wanted to be the best fighter ever. That’s how she spoke as a teenager.”

The 31-year-old Estrada soundly defeated Anabel Ortiz to win the WBA 105-pound title in March 2021. It was her first major title win and she still holds the belt. Estrada added world title belt at 108 pounds with a ten-round points Tenkai Tsunami less than four months later.

Estrada won both belts under the Golden Boy Promotions banner. Her contract with Golden Boy ran out at the end of 2021, which was followed by a bitter, months-long dispute. They eventually severed ties, though Estrada ultimately fell upward.

Two fights into a lucrative promotional deal with Top Rank, Estrada shut out unbeaten Tina Rupprecht last March 25 in Fresno, California. The win saw Estrada earn The Ring 105-pound championship and the WBC title. She will risk both as well as thw WBA title versus Valle, who puts her IBF and WBO 105-pound belts on the line.

The winner of their bout will crown the sport’s first-ever undisputed strawweight champion, regardless of gender. It will come in a show in front of a rabid crowd at Desert Diamond Arena, which has become a boxing hotspot in recent years.

The Estrada-Valle fight is one of many examples of women’s boxing’s evolution from a niche sport to its current golden era. Several current and former world titleholders have raised their profile through prominent placement on significant platforms. With it has come the compensation to finally catch up to the skill set for fighters such as Claressa Shields, Katie Taylor, Amanda Serrano, Cecilia Braekhus, Chantelle Cameron, Natasha Jones, Alycia Baumgardner, and Delfine Persoon, among others.

Estrada and Valle are part of that elite class. They’ve done so at a weight that even the men’s side has struggled to make relevant, never mind lucrative.

Avila says he is not surprised women’s boxing is in the state it is in now.

“I always thought women would crack that barrier to what it is today,” said Avila, who runs the Sweet Science website. “Few people paid attention to what I saw. To many, women’s boxing didn’t make any sense. I saw the potential with the sport back in the 1990’s. There were female fights on cards and those were the best fights. Fans would throw money in the ring. I saw the competitiveness and action in the sport. I couldn’t understand why some promoters didn’t push the sport hard enough.

“I was surprised women’s boxing took this long to cross over into more the mainstream. Then when women were allowed to fight in the Olympics in 2012, things began to change. You had Claressa Shields and Katie Taylor fight and win (medals). Then, when Ronda Rousey had success in the UFC, that proved women could sell in combat sports. You saw the emergence of other fighters, like Amanda Serrano. They smashed the door wide open for other female fighters to follow.”

Not all female fighters were successful.

There is the case of Elizabeth Quevedo. Avila pointed out Quevedo was a shoo-in to represent the United States at the 2008 Olympic Games, had women’s boxing been allowed. Quevedo, a four-time amateur champion, settled for one pro fight, a knockout win over Danielle Christiansen in May 2007. The win was Quevedo’s only fight as a pro.

Avila believes the sky is the limit for Estrada. The same can be said for Valle (30-2, 9 KOs), who is very popular in Costa Rica, where she moved to after growing up in Nicaragua.

The sport is in good hands, according to Avila. The likes of Shields, Serrano, Taylor, Cameron, Mayer and especially Estradad will make the sport better.

“Seniesa is determined to be the best. She’s smart as to who to fight. She’s aware of everything boxing-related around her. She understands and knows about marketing yourself to help sell tickets. Plus, she’s a skilled fighter.”

Francisco A. Salazar has written for The Ring since October 2013 and has covered boxing in Southern California and abroad since 2000. Francisco also covers boxing for the Ventura County (California) Star newspaper. He can be reached at [email protected].
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