Photo by Tom Hogan/Golden Boy/Getty Images
Seniesa Estrada scored the the fastest KO in women’s boxing history against an opponent who was way out of her depth.
Friday night’s seven-second KO victory for Seniesa Estrada over Miranda Adkins was indeed the fastest win in women’s boxing history, but it’s been loudly argued that the fight should’ve never happened to begin with. Upon further review, it’s one that California State Athletic Commission executive officer Andy Foster would like to have back.
“I’m critical of myself for approving that fight,” Foster said to Bloody Elbow on Monday.
Adkins took on Estrada on short notice — Foster noted that there was enough time for Adkins to go through California’s COVID-19 protocols — in what was DAZN’s first live boxing event since the pandemic led to numerous event cancellations and postponements. As soon as the bell rang, Estrada charged towards Adkins’ corner and it didn’t take long for Miranda to be on her back and out cold.
While mismatches in combat sports (along with athletic commissions rejecting bouts, California included) are hardly a rare occurrence, this one seemed particularly egregious on the part of Golden Boy.
Estrada (19-0, 8 KOs) has established herself as a serious contender, and is not too far removed from handing flyweight standout Marlen Esparza the first loss of her career. She also had an extensive amateur career, reportedly compiling a record of 97-4 before turning professional.
On the flip side, Adkins’ 5-0 record coming into the contest consisted of wins entirely in the US midwest against opponents who are (as of this writing) without a professional victory to their names. From an interview in 2018, the 42-year-old turned to combat sports in 2016 following the death of her mother, eventually focusing just on boxing after training in MMA, jiu-jitsu, as well as competing in amateur MMA and kickboxing.
While it’s true that Adkins was replacing the injured Jacky Calvo, ditto the fact that Estrada only had one first-round knockout to her name entering this fight, the gulf in experience and quality of opponent had the makings of a disastrous outcome. Even Foster admitted that while the fight wasn’t good, he thought “the bout would go longer than seven seconds.”
Another aspect of this fight is the much-maligned awarding of titles from major sanctioning bodies. Estrada is the WBC’s “silver” women’s junior flyweight champion and they gave the green light to recognize this as a title defense before California could even approve the bout to happen. This from the same organization that rightfully said “no” to Danny Garcia vs. Rod Salka as a real title bout.
In an interview with Ring Magazine’s Ryan O’Hara, Foster said that he’s never denied a WBC title fight before.
“I wished I hadn’t have [approved the fight],” Foster emphasized again.
Just in case you’re wondering, Adkins’ medical suspension runs through at least the end of September.