Marlen Esparza | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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![]() Esparza at the 2012 ALMA Awards | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Pasadena, Texas, U.S. | July 29, 1989||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Nationality | American | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Weight(s) | Flyweight | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 5 ft 3 in (160 cm) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Reach | 64 in (163 cm) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Stance | Orthodox | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Boxing record | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Total fights | 15 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wins | 14 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Wins by KO | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Losses | 1 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Marlen Esparza (born July 29, 1989)[1] is an American professional boxer who held the WBC female flyweight title since June 2021 and the WBA and The Ring female flyweight title since April 2022, and the WBO one since July, 2023. As an amateur, she became the first American woman to qualify for the Olympics in the first year that women's boxing was an Olympic event,[2] going on to win a bronze medal in the women's flyweight division at the 2012 Olympics in London.[3]
Esparza, who is of Mexican descent, graduated from Pasadena High School in Pasadena, Texas in 2007.[4] Esparza won a bronze medal at the 2006 Women's World Boxing Championship,[5] gold at the 2014 AIBA Women's World Boxing Championships, and bronze at the 2016 AIBA Women's World Boxing Championships.[6]
Esparza was the subject of Soledad O'Brien's 2011 CNN documentary In Her Corner: Latino in America 2.[7] She was the subject of an extensive profile in the June 2012 issue of The Atlantic,[8] which discusses in detail her childhood, education, and her intense commitment to competition and training.
Marlen Esparza was voted the Houston Fighter Of The Year (an award that encompasses both professional and amateur boxers) for 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, and 2014.[6]
In December 2016, she signed a contract with Golden Boy Promotions and subsequently made her pro debut on ESPN's March 23, 2017 opening card of a multi-year deal with Golden Boy. She won that fight, which was against Rachel Sazoff.[9]
She faced Seniesa Estrada for the WBA interim female flyweight title on November 2, 2019 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Paradise, Nevada. The bout formed part of the undercard for Canelo Álvarez vs Sergey Kovalev. The bout was stopped at the end of the ninth round, on the advice of the ringside doctor, after Esparza suffered a cut in the fifth round from an accidental clash of heads, handing her the first defeat of her professional career by way of a unanimous technical decision.[10]
Esparza has an endorsement deal with CoverGirl cosmetics.[8] She also appeared in a Spanish-language commercial for Coca-Cola.[11] In addition, she collaborated with animal rights group PETA and posed in an ad to urge the public to speak up for abused animals.[12]
15 fights | 14 wins | 1 loss |
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By knockout | 1 | 0 |
By decision | 13 | 1 |
No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
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15 | Win | 14–1 | Gabriela Celeste Alaniz | MD | 10 | Jul 8, 2023 | AT&T Center, San Antonio, Texas, U.S. | Retained WBC, WBA and The Ring female flyweight titles, won WBO female Flyweight title |
14 | Win | 13–1 | Eva Guzman | UD | 10 | Aug 6, 2022 | Dickies Arena, Fort Worth, Texas, U.S. | Retained WBC, WBA and The Ring female flyweight titles |
13 | Win | 12–1 | Naoko Fujioka | UD | 10 | Apr 9, 2022 | Alamodome, San Antonio, Texas, U.S. | Retained WBC female flyweight title; Won WBA and inaugural The Ring female flyweight titles |
12 | Win | 11–1 | Anabel Ortiz | UD | 10 | Dec 18, 2021 | AT&T Center, San Antonio, Texas, U.S. | Retained WBC female flyweight title |
11 | Win | 10–1 | Ibeth Zamora Silva | UD | 10 | Jun 19, 2021 | Don Haskins Center, El Paso, Texas, U.S. | Won WBC female flyweight title |
10 | Win | 9–1 | Shelly Barnett | UD | 6 | Mar 5, 2021 | Dort Federal Event Center, Flint, Michigan, U.S. | |
9 | Win | 8–1 | Sulem Urbina | UD | 8 | Oct 30, 2020 | Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Indio, California, U.S. | |
8 | Loss | 7–1 | Seniesa Estrada | TD | 9 (10), 2:00 | Nov 2, 2019 | MGM Grand Garden Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. | For WBA interim female flyweight title; Unanimous TD after Esparza was cut from an accidental head clash |
7 | Win | 7–0 | Sonia Osorio | UD | 8 | Jul 18, 2019 | Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Indio, California, U.S. | |
6 | Win | 6–0 | Jhosep Vizcaíno | UD | 8 | Apr 25, 2019 | Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Indio, California, U.S. | |
5 | Win | 5–0 | Laetizia Campana | TKO | 3 (8), 0:11 | Apr 6, 2018 | Belasco Theater, Los Angeles, California, U.S. | |
4 | Win | 4–0 | Karla Valenzuela | UD | 6 | Dec 14, 2017 | Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Indio, California, U.S. | |
3 | Win | 3–0 | Aracely Palacios | UD | 6 | Sep 16, 2017 | T-Mobile Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. | |
2 | Win | 2–0 | Samantha Salazar | UD | 4 | May 6, 2017 | T-Mobile Arena, Paradise, Nevada, U.S. | |
1 | Win | 1–0 | Rachel Sazoff | UD | 4 | Mar 23, 2017 | Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Indio, California, U.S. |