Alycia Baumgardner joins Ring Magazine to discuss a number of topics including her upcoming fight against Elif Nur Turhan, whether she’ll ever fight Caroline Dubois, not getting a shot at Amanda Serrano before her retirement, and if there’s any potential for a rematch with Mikaela Mayer. Check out some excerpts of what she had to say below.
Baumgarnder on when she plans on fighting Dubois
“I know that I’m fighting the winner of Han and Dubois for undisputed. That’s how I wanted it, that’s what it’s going to be. So once we beat Turhan we have to see
who’s next, is it Han or is it Dubois.”
On preparing for Turhan’s mauling style
“This is a style that is very common among women, I would say, in boxing. So, I know what I have to do as a fighter, I have to make sure that I’m sharp, I have to make sure I have composure. I know that I’m really good with my timing, so punching in between her shots. We saw that she does get hit a lot, and we know that I have a punch, so it’s going to be a matter of staying composed, punching in between, and using my skill. Like this is boxing, it’s not a fight. It’s skill vs. whatever she got going on.”
On Serrano retiring without her ever getting that fight
“When I first signed MVP that was something I was very vocal about, about having the fight with Amanda. I thought it was something that can really set the stage again for women’s boxing. I’m not mad she’s retiring, she has put in the work in the sport. So, happy retirement to her. I know she’s going out with a bang to fight in Puerto Rico. So, nothing against that, but I definitely did want that fight. I will say that.”
On whether a rematch with Mayer is on her radar
“I don’t know what weight class she’s at, at the moment. So, I don’t know what that looks like. But right now I’m at 135, I’m very comfortable, very strong, so we’ll just have to see what boxing holds. The pot is very small when it comes to women’s boxing, so you never know.
“I don’t duck no smoke. We all know that boxing is a business so I always make sure things are aligning when it comes to the business part, and I’m always going to show up to fight.”
