BoxingScene.com
Julaton is primed to bounce back Friday night in Mexico. (Team Julaton)
The
Filipina’s fight with Yolanda Segura (8-3, 7 KOs) will mark the first
time in 11 bouts that a title belt will not be on the line or in her
possession. In addition, the longtime 122-pound champ will be competing
north of junior featherweight for only the second time in her career.
BREAKING: Segura came in at 130 pounds, four over the contracted limit. Julaton will still take the fight after Segura agreed to forfeit 25 percent of her purse to "The Hurricane." Segura can also not weight more than 132 pounds by fight night.
Still,
the 31-year-old who hails from Daly City, Calif., feels the time is
right for a long overdue showdown with current WBA junior featherweight
holder Jackie Nava.
“I know everyone down in the Philippines want
to see it, and people in Mexico have told me they want to see it, too,”
she said. “Philippines versus Mexico has always been a great rivalry
for the fans.”
BoxingScene.com caught up with “The Hurricane” as
we covered topics ranging from her overall impression of her defeat in
Argentina to Yesica Marcos, her upcoming matchup with Segura, and why
she feels fight with Jackie Nava makes sense.
BoxingScene.com:
There was quite a bit of controversy regarding your WBO title loss in
Argentina to Yesica Marcos, starting with the referee being replaced at
the last minute among other things. Now that you’ve had a month to
clear your head, what can you say about your trip there?
Ana
Julaton: It was a frustrating experience. I’m not too happy with how it
all went down, but that’s how boxing goes. I just have to move
forward.
BoxingScene.com: This is the first time 11 fights where a
title is not on the line or in your possession, but in many ways, it
mirrors where you were after you lost to Lisa Brown two years ago. Do
you go revisit that as a source of motivation knowing that you’ve
bounced back before?
Ana Julaton: Yeah, I do revisit that at
times, and I guess kind of like this situation here. Against Marcos, it
was kind of cool to fight in front of 40,000 people, and your
competitive nature is at a high when you’re going up against a whole
country. Now I’m doing the same thing in Mexico. I just feel really
excited to be going back to Mexico and getting right back in there.
BoxingScene.com:
What do you know about Yolanda Segura? She’s got seven knockouts, but
all of them came against very inexperienced fighters.
Ana Julaton: She’s been fighting at 134, 135, and she’ll be coming down to 126 pounds. I don’t know much about her, and honestly, I really don’t care. I see that she’s got several knockouts and I won’t take anything for granted. I know she’ll be coming at me with her best.
I’m
fighting another Mexican in Mexico. What can I say except this gets my
competitive juices flowing? It inspires you to take on another
challenge like that. It’s up to me to get back in the swing of things
and get some quality sparring to prepare myself for anything.
BoxingScene.com:
The one fight you’ve been clamoring for this whole time is one against
Jackie Nava, who headlines a card in Mexico the day after your fight.
Do you think these trips to your opponents’ homelands are sufficient
enough preparation for a challenge like that, especially since you’d
probably have to go to Mexico to fight her?
Ana Julaton: No
doubt. Just going down to Argentina, it’s seeing a whole different
culture. Granted there was the whole controversy with [Johnriel]
Casimero going down there and his team getting attacked, so everyone was
on high alert and there were problems, but like I said, there were a
few things about the way I was treated down there that I didn’t
necessarily think were right. I guess, yeah, you can say it was a
learning experience.
About Nava, that’s the type of fight that
would get women’s boxing the spotlight it needs. She’s getting a soft
opponent the day after my fight, and it’s probably for exposure. I’m
hearing that they’re going to put her on the July 14 [Juan Manuel]
Marquez undercard, so they probably don’t want to put her in any danger.
BoxingScene.com: Is this why you’ve been fighting in Mexico?
Ana
Julaton: That’s why I’m here. The best way to lobby for a fight with
Nava is to get my name floated on Mexican TV. My fight is the day
before that fight, so I think it will help. I know everyone down in the
Philippines want to see it, and people in Mexico have told me they want
to see it, too.
Philippines versus Mexico has always been a
great rivalry for the fans, so why not on the undercard for July 14?
Like I said, I’m just looking for the opportunity. After I do what I
have to do here, I want to fight Nava. I totally want to fight Nava.
BoxingScene.com:
I think you’ve shown a different side in our past two interviews in
that you’ve been speaking your mind about your disgust with the politics
in the game. Why?
Ana Julaton: You know what? I do have
something personal with the WBO, with the way I was treated in
Argentina, and put in that situation where my challenger was given
advantage after advantage. It’s distasteful, and the political side of
boxing is wack.
I was in Las Vegas watching Mike Tyson speak live
the other day, and he was talking about Cus D’amato, and how it was
them against the world. I want this Nava fight and get my just due. As
a female fighter, you’re always just struggling to get any kind of
exposure. I’m sure my promoter Allan Tremblay has a plan for me, and
all I gotta do is keep winning.
Norcalboxing.net's Ryan Maquiñana is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and Ring Magazine’s Ratings Panel. E-mail him at rmaquinana@gmail.com, check out his weekly column for Comcast SportsNet Bay Area, his archive for BoxingScene.com, or follow him on Twitter: @RMaq28.
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