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For years she was considered one
of the best, if not the best,
pound-for-pound female boxers in
the world, but after losing
decisions to Holly Holm and
Cecilia Braekhus in back-to-back
welterweight world title fights,
Anne Sophie Mathis, 26-3 (22),
is now on a mission to get back
to the top.
On June 1 at the
Salle Roger Boileau in her
hometown of Dombasle, France,
Mathis will move up in weight to
fight Dominican Yahaira
Hernandez, 14-4 (8), for the
vacant World Boxing Federation
World Super Welterweight title,
attempting to become a
three-weight world champion.
At 35 years of age, and almost
eighteen years as a
professional, Mathis knows that
she is in the twilight of her
career, and besides winning the
WBF World title at Super
Welterweight, she has a clear
goal for the near future:
Revenge!
“I have fought all the best
opponents at Welterweight, so we
decided to make a change and
move up in weight. But my goal
is still to get a rematch with
Breakhus”, said Mathis.
“If I win this title, I am back
and can negotiate a rematch with
Breakhus. Sweet revenge!”
Mathis turned pro in 2005, and
won her first world title, at
Light Welterweight, the
following year. In 2011 she
captured the WBF World
Welterweight title, which she
lost to Holly Holm last year in
Albuquerque, USA. Prior to that
she had brutally knocked Holm
out in their first encounter,
but a rubber match is likely
never going happen as the
American recently announced her
retirement.
But Breakhus is still out there,
and Mathis is still one of the
best in the world. Going on the
road to fight the Norwegian girl
the first time didn’t scare
here, and she is ready to do it
again if she gets the chance.
And with that in mind, Mathis
feels that the Hernandez fight
is a very special occasion,
saying:
“We chose Dombasle for this
fight because it will probably
be my last opportunity to fight
here, in front of my fans, my
friends, my family. Even if it
means making financial
sacrifices, this is where I want
to fight this time!”
In Yahaira Hernandez, Mathis
will be in with a tough cookie.
Hernandez has the experience,
power and skills to give Mathis
a tough night! The 25-year-old
from Santo Domingo is coming off
three knockout victories, and
she has only come up short in
world title-challenges against
some of the best:
In 2007 against Natascha
Ragosina at Super Middleweight
and Karolina Lukasik at Super
Welterweight, in 2008 against
Jisselle Salandy at Super
Welterweight, and in 2011
against WBF World Champion
Christina Hammer at
Middleweight.
Having struggled with injuries
since the Breakhus loss, Mathis
is not underestimating
Hernandez:
“This will be a tough fight, and
I expect a strong challenge from
Hernandez. It was hard dealing
with the injuries, but I have
been injury-free now for two
months and have trained twice a
day, so I will be in top shape
and ready to take care of her!” |
