Home › Sports › Boxing
Boxing: Atlanta's Mariem Brakache was no match for Holly Holm
Photo by Steven St. JohnTribune
Tribune
Albuquerque boxer Holly Holm trades punches with Mariem Brakache of Atlanta during the sixth round of their bout. Holm won after the fight was stopped in the seventh-round due to a cut near Brakache's eye on Friday night at Isleta Casino & Resort.
Photo by Steven St. JohnTribune
Tribune
Holly Holm visits with her fans after her victory over game foe Mariem Brakache. Holm's next bout is set for Feb. 7 in Temecula, Calif..
Photo by Steven St. JohnTribune
Tribune
Boxing fan Gary Cortez uses binoculars to watch the action during one of the undercard bouts of a show featuring Albuquerque's Holly Holm in the main event. "I bring them because it just blocks everybody else out," Cortez said. Holm captured her 20th pro victory and defended two of her world titles in a seventh-round decision over Atlanta's Mariem Brakache on Friday night at Isleta Casino & Resort.
RELATED STORIES
More Boxing
- Unifying belts on mind of title holder
- Mixed Martial Arts: Duke City fighter Condit whips challenger in front of hometown crowd, retain WEC crown
- Cibola High graduate Condit will defend fighting title in home town
MOST RECENT TRIB STORIES
-
ABQTrib.com to remain available
08:48 a.m., February 25, 2008 -
Congressman is indicted
08:37 a.m., February 23, 2008 -
Series of attacks target Green Zone
08:36 a.m., February 23, 2008 -
Iran is defying U.N., agency says
08:35 a.m., February 23, 2008 -
Waterboarding approval probed
08:34 a.m., February 23, 2008
TRIB IN THE BLOGOSPHERE*
- Ty Murray Invitational thrills fans in Albuquerque
- Is Rome Burning?
- Ominous Skies
- The Road to Invalidation
- Albuquerque company participates in “Extreme Makeover: Home Edition”
*Note: The Tribune does not create and is not responsible for the blogosphere's headlines and stories. These links to blogs talking about ABQTrib.com are automatically generated. Use them at your own risk.
STORY TOOLS
SHARE THIS STORY [?]
After the one-sided loss at the hands of hometown favorite Holly Holm, Atlanta's Mariem Brakache might want to change her nickname from "Punchenella" to "Punchenella Bag."
Though her awkwardness might've presented a bit of a challenge, Holm scored her 20th pro win on Friday night in front of a capacity crowd at Isleta Casino & Resort. Holm picked up every round on all three judges' scorecards in increasingly punishing form before the fight was stopped in the seventh due to a cut near Brakache's right eye.
Holm's next fight has already been lined up, but it does not appear as if she will be in any more danger than she was with Brakache.
In what will be her first fight out of the Albuquerque area, Holm will take on the much-lighter Belinda Laracuente (23-19-3, 9 KOs) on a fight televised on "The Best Damn Sports Show Period" scheduled for Feb. 7 from the Pechanga Casino in Temecula, Calif.
Laracuente, who fights from 126 to 140, has won but one fight in the past 2 1/2 years.
For much of Friday's fight, Brakache waited for Holm to come to her - which she did. Most of the time, it resulted in speedy straight lefts that landed for Holm, though, on a few occasions, Brakache was able to land a counter right hand.
Most of the time, Brakache had to settle for hitting and holding, illegal punches behind the head, and hitting on the break, in order to score leather on the bigger, faster, speedier Holm.
As the rounds wore on, Holm's success with clean punches increased until, in the seventh round, an accidental headbutt resulted in a cut on the side of Brakache's face. When the wound seeped too much blood, referee Rocky Burke stopped the contest at 1:40, erroneously awarding a TKO win to Holm when, according to the rules, an early stoppage from an accidental headbutt, after the third round, should go to the scorecards.
"How in the world can you call that a TKO?" said Brakache backstage.
"It should've, at least, gone to the scorecards."
In the ring, after the decision, Brakache accused Holm of intentionally headbutting her.
"She blamed me of doing it on purpose," said Holm. "Why would I do that when I was winning every round?
"I told her right there to finish the remaining rounds, but she didn't say anything back."
At the time of stoppage, Holm was ahead 60-54 on all three cards.
"I just wish I would've picked up the pace earlier," said Holm. "I should've capitalized on it when I had her hurt.
"We didn't have any tape on her and didn't know what to expect. I needed the early rounds to feel her out but as the fight wore on, I just wanted to finish her."
For Holm, who has not fought since September, the fight was a defense of her World Boxing Council and International Female Boxing Association welterweight titles.
With the win, Holm moves to 20-1-2, 6 KOs, while Brakache falls to 5-6, 1 KO.
• In the co-main event, Bloomfield welterweight Joe Gomez (14-1-1, 7 KOs) had a much harder-than-anticipated time with San Antonio's Rudy Hernandez (14-7-1, 5 KOs). Throughout the fight, Hernandez landed the harder punches while Gomez sought to outbox his opponent. Scorecards read 78-74 twice for Gomez and 77-75 for Hernandez.
• Albuquerque featherweight Willie Villanueva (8-0, 2 KOs) kept his record unbeaten with the most impressive punch of the night - a picture perfect straight right hand that stunned San Antonio journeyman Elvis Martinez (11-24-2, 5 KOs) long enough for referee Rocky Burke to stop the action at 2:59 of the first round.
• Albuquerque welterweight Joe Cruz (2-2, 1 KO) lost by unanimous decision to Rio Rancho southpaw Lucas Galle (3-1) with scores of 40-35 twice and 39-36. Cruz was down briefly at the end of the third.
• Albuquerque strawweight Jodi Esquibel (5-2-1, 2 KOs) had to settle for a draw against Ava Knight (2-0-1) of Chico, Calif. Scores were 38-38 twice and 39-37 for Knight.
