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Amanda "The Real Deal" Serrano Returns Wednesday In The
Dominican Republic
Tomorrow morning, Amanda “The Real Deal” Serrano (38-1-1, 28
KOs) will travel to the Dominican Republic for a Wednesday
night rematch with Dahiana Santana (36-12, 15 KOs) at Santo
Domingo’s Hotel Catalonia Malecon Center. It will be the
seven-division champion’s first fight since January, despite
several high-profile bouts being knocked out by Covid-19.
Serrano has twice been scheduled to fight Katie Taylor, in a
contest that is widely considered the biggest fight in
women’s boxing. The bout was announced in late March, just
before the Covid-19 pandemic shut down New York City, and
kicked off a spate of event cancellations. The May 2nd bout
was rescheduled for July in England. Once again, the bout
was sidelined by Covid, and rescheduled for August. Unable
to go to the gym due to Covid restrictions in New York City,
and unwilling to travel and fight, without proper sparring,
literally in her opponent’s promoter’s backyard, with no
neutral officials, during a pandemic, Serrano and her team
decided to move on from the Taylor bout.
A unique and exciting opportunity then seemed to present
itself - a historic, all-women event, set to take place in
December on a new major platform, that would have seen
Serrano unify her WBO featherweight title with Sarah
Mahfoud’s IBF featherweight title. That event was canceled
largely due to the rise of Covid-19 cases.
“We had to get Amanda in the ring,” said Lou DiBella,
President of DiBella Entertainment (DBE). “I then happily
made a deal with the new Ring City series to feature her on
their December 17 card, which already included Jelena
Mrdjenovich.”
Serrano was set to face Taynna Cardoso, of Brazil, in an
eight-round bout, when Cardoso’s pre-fight Covid test came
back positive. Undeterred, Serrano kept training, and a
replacement opponent, Argentinian Ana Romina Guichapani, was
secured.
“We got word that the airport closest to Guichapani in Santa
Cruz, Argentina, was closed due to Covid,” said DiBella. “In
order to get to the States, she would have to fly out of
Buenos Aires, which is a two-and-a-half day drive for her.
We couldn’t make it work, but Amanda needed to fight.”
DiBella then secured a rematch with Dahiana Santana, the
only opponent available on short notice. Serrano had stopped
Santana at Barclays Center, in their first hard-fought
fight, with a TKO in the eighth round. To benefit Dahiana
and to make the rematch a bit more interesting, the fight
was moved to the Dominican Republic, Santana’s backyard, on
a card promoted by Shuan Boxing Promotions.
“I have the best promoter, the best team, that has been
trying to put me on multiple cards in December,” said
Serrano. “I did my medicals, I have continued training. I’m
doing my part, and am looking forward to getting back in
that ring and fighting again.
“I definitely want to unify with the IBF champion Sarah
Mahfoud, as well as the WBC and WBA belts with Jelena
Mrdjenovich,” Serrano continued. “Hopefully, that will
happen in 2021.”
Mrdjenovich is scheduled to face Iranda Paola Torres on
Thursday’s Ring City card on NBC SportsNet. In the main
event, DiBella Entertainment’s rising star Charles “Bad
News” Conwell will be facing Madiyar Ashkeyev, and DBE’s
undefeated heavyweight prospect Stephan “Big Shot” Shaw will
be fighting Lyubomyr Pinchuk on the same card.
“What a long, strange trip 2020 has been,” said DiBella.
“Amanda and her manager, Jordan Maldonado, have been so
patient and cooperative, and it’s been frustrating to face
so many roadblocks this year. Amanda is one of the top
pound-for-pound fighters in the world. We’ll get through
this fight, and focus on 2021. It is Amanda’s desire to
unify the featherweight division. That’s what we are aiming
to do. Amanda’s on a collision course with Jelena
Mrdjenovich and Sarah Mahfoud.”
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