TIJUANA Boxer Jackie Nava not only battled a tough opponent last week in her stellar fight against Ana María Torres, she also faced a TV network and its commentators openly skeptical of her skills.
By fight's end, the three judges awarded each boxer the same score, 95-95.
"It's a tie that tastes like a win," said Nava in an interview this week in her native Tijuana. "I agree that the first rounds were very tight, but I won more than half of the fight. She knows it, the fans know it."
Torres, from the state of Mexico, was her opponent in the April 16 that was televised nationally in Mexico by Televisa. The powerful network has aired Torres's fights in prime time in the last two years.
Nava complained that Televisa's commentators appeared to favor Torres during the fight's broadcast.
Nava (24-3-3-11 knockouts) holds the WBC's junior featherweight title while Torres (24-3-3-14 knockouts) holds the council's super flyweight title.
The women, both 31, fought one of the most memorable matches in Mexico's boxing history. The match had the highest rating of any women's fight in Mexico, seen by at least 25 million people across the country, according to Televisa.
The ten-round fight was exciting. From start to finish the women, the best two female fighters in Mexico, fought with courage and conviction, their fists responding when their brains seemingly did not want to.
Nava's speed and surprising combinations discouraged Torres, whose strength and accurate jabs at times appeared to even the match.
"This has been, without a doubt, the best fight of my career," Nava said, "and the most demanding one in terms of preparation."
She trained at the Otomí training center, in Toluca, with the team that's accompanied her throughout her decade-long professional career.
She also received support from fellow Tijuana native, the three-time world champion Érik "Terrible" Morales. He made room for her at the Otomí boxing gym when he was preparing for his fight against Marcos Maidana. And he practiced with her, offering technical and tactical advice on how to challenge Torres.
The fight's outcome opens the door to a rematch, which is already being negotiated, Nava said. A September date is being discussed, with the possible venue being Tijuana, Mexico City or Cancún.
For the time being, Nava said she will rest a couple of more weeks and then begin jogging lightly at the gym because it's likely that she will defend her world title before she once more raises her fists against Torres.
Omar.millan@sandiegored.com
