‘It will be war’ says coach of Perozzi opponent
Teresa Perozzi’s WBA and WBC women’s middleweight unification championship bout with the unbeaten Tori Nelson will be a “hell of a fight”.That’s the prediction of Nelson’s trainer, coach and manager, Craig Fladager, who says local fight fans can expect to witness some aggressive boxing when the two combatants lock horns in the Poinciana Ballroom at Southampton Princess on October 13.“We actually feel that this will be the hardest fight for both girls in their careers because they both come forward and neither one backs up,” Fladager told The Royal Gazette. “It’s going to be a hard fight and fought in the middle of the ring.“I don’t think one is going to be chasing after the other because they both have similar styles and are very strong so that’s the type of fight it’s going to be, the type of fight fans will love. I think this fight will bring people to women’s boxing and do a lot for women’s boxing in general.“Whoever walks away with it (championship belts) is going to be in a perfect position to improve their legacy and I just think the way the girls conduct themselves in and out of the ring is going to be good for the sport.”Fladager is confident his fighter can rise to the challenge but is wary her task won’t be easy against Bermudian southpaw Perozzi.“By no means do we feel this is going to be an easy fight or a fight Tori is definitely going to win,” he said. “We know this is going to be her test to come to Teresa’s house and try to beat her there. But we wouldn’t have taken the fight if we didn’t think it was possible Tori could win.”Fladager said he admired Perozzi’s bold decision not to fight a weaker opponent to enhance her chances of retaining her WBA middleweight crown.“We know that Teresa could’ve have taken an easier fight to defend that belt but she’s not,” he said. “In my opinion for her style she’s taken on the hardest fight she could’ve taken and for that we respect her because we know that she’s not just trying to keep her belt and fight weak opponents.“She’s stepping up to the plate and taken on who she thinks is the best fighter and it’s going to be a war and a hell of a fight and we commend on her for that. We have a lot of respect for Teresa, not only as a champion, but also because of the way she carries herself and the way she acts.”Mother-of-two Nelson has yet to be beaten as a pro and is currently the top ranked women’s boxer in the United States and third in the world. The orthodox boxer is also the reigning Women’s International Boxing Association (WIBA) champion.Fladager said Nelson was a woman on a mission.“Her goal isn’t just to enhance what she’s doing . . . she’s also trying to enhance the sport of boxing for women in general,” he said. “She’s trying to show these young girls, which is what I think Teresa is doing as well, on how to act and how to go about being a champion without saying it.”Earlier this year Nelson’s WBC middleweight title became vacant after she failed to defend it. The American landed the WBC crown after beating compatriot Lorissa Rivas in Trinidad last year.“We really thought winning that belt was going to change Tori’s career but unfortunately it didn’t,” Fladager said. “When she won the WBC belt she then had to defend it but nobody would step forward and challenge her and we couldn’t afford the to put the money in to defend the belt, so therefore they (WBC) vacated it.”In her last outing in the ring Nelson, whose pro record stands at 6-0-1, defeated Vashon Living on a unanimous points decision in her native Virginia, USA, to claim the vacant WIBA middleweight title.Perozzi (9-4-1) won the WBA middleweight title after getting past Rivas in Trinidad last December and successfully defended her title against American April Ward at Berkeley School Gym last March.Tickets for October’s championship bout are expected to go on sale early next month.