With this momentous year for women’s boxing rapidly winding down, Seniesa Estrada finally made her long-awaited reappearance in Las Vegas last night. I’m confident that I speak for pretty much everyone, except for maybe Marlen Esparza, when I say that it felt super good to welcome back ‘Superbad.’
We have been denied seeing Estrada in action for eleven long months, the last time being December 18 when she wrapped up a remarkable 2021 by ending Maria Santizo’s evening with a Kodak-moment left hook in the fourth round.
Watching from the sidelines thus far while the likes of Katie Taylor, Amanda Serrano, Claressa Shields, Savannah Marshall, Alycia Baumgardner, Mikaela Mayer, Chantelle Cameron, and Jessica McCaskill grabbed all the major headlines in 2022, Seniesa has undergone some life and career-altering changes in the meantime–turning 30, cutting ties with Golden Boy Promotions, and inking a multi-year contract with Top Rank.
Nearly a year’s worth of ring rust is no insignificant amount to shake off, even for a fighter as youthful and fit and accomplished as Estrada. Therefore, it stood to reason that a substantially low-risk opponent would be chosen for her return fight, Top Rank debut, and second defense of her WBA World minimumweight title. This is the point at which Jazmin Gala Villarino (6-1-2, 1KO) is plucked from obscurity to enter the story.
The 32-year-old Argentine they call ‘La Jefa’ lost her 2016 pro debut, a four-round majority decision that went to Andrea Soledad Sanchez, but has since gone unbeaten in her last eight bouts. Villarino claimed the newly-created WBA Gold minimumweight championship last November by forcing former world title challenger Yenifer Leon out of Venezuela to quit in her corner after the completion of seven rounds. Similarly, Leon opted to remain on her stool rather than come out for round six and take more punishment from Seniesa Estrada in 2019. In her previous outing, Leon had gone the distance with then-WBA minimumweight champion Anabel Ortiz, from whom Estrada eventually took the title.
Defending her WBA Gold belt back in March, Villarino outpointed 10-4-1 Judith Vivanco over ten rounds in Coyoacan, Mexico which was presumably what put her at sixes and sevens opposite the ultimate 105-pound high roller, Seniesa ‘Superbad’ Estrada, at the Palms Casino Resort. Trying her luck in this big stakes toss of the dice, the odds were stacked tremendously against Villarino. Not surprisingly, she came up snake eyes on Saturday night.
It was certainly not for lack of trying on Jazmin’s part. The Argentinian challenger put forth a spirited effort from the opening bell by letting her hands go early on, demonstrating a valiant willingness to stand and trade with Estrada. It became evident pretty quickly, however, that Seniesa’s elevated skill set and offensive acumen would be the deciding factors in this contest.
Working upstairs and down and switching stances with blinding speed, Estrada’s volume and variety of punches cannot be described as flurries so much as white-out blizzard conditions, something you just don’t see on the Vegas strip under ordinary circumstances. Then again, there is nothing ordinary about Estrada.
If the left hook doesn’t get you, she will pivot to a southpaw stance and come at you with her right hand before reaction time can set in, assuring that you stand little chance of being able to do anything about it. Securing the earmuffs to weather the storm up north leaves you vulnerable down south to Seniesa’s ambidextrous body shots.
For Villarino, as rugged and determined as she proved to be, this put her smack dab in the middle of a no-win scenario. Simply put, she ate an incredible amount of punches, nearly twice as many as she connected with herself. 210 to be exact, the majority of which seemed to be Estrada’s thudding overhand rights as evidenced by the tell-tale swelling on the left side of Villarino’s face at fight’s end.
The fact that she was able to remain vertical until the final bell was something of a moral victory for the intrepid Villarino, who got to share the ring with arguably the most gifted and entertaining fighter in the sport today, regardless of gender.
“I just want to tell all girls, and all women in sports, to always believe in yourself, always believe in what you can do, and always go after what you want,” said an emotional Estrada after sweeping every round on the judges’ scorecards en route to a unanimous shutout victory.
“I might have been slowed down, but I can’t be stopped. This is what I was born to do,” Seniesa vowed. ”This is my destiny, and you can’t stop destiny.”
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