A few days ago boxing was hit with a tragedy after young Mexican boxer Jeanette Zacarías (now 2-4) died a few days after her fight with unbeaten Marie Pier Houle (CAN, now 4-0-1) in Montréal, Canada.

Instead of setting the alarms to try and prevent another tragedy like this one, just this week the World Boxing Council is sanctioning two fights where female Mexican boxers will combat in two clear mismatches, labeled as ‘World Title’ fights.

Zacarías was not a world-calibre contender but a 2-3 record is not, on paper, a heavy mismatch against a 3-0-1 boxer. The problem is that Zacarías had virtually no Amateur career, and according to Yahoo!, she should have had a brain surgery after her KO loss against Cynthia Lozano (MEX, 8-0) last May.

Mexican newspaper Proceso says that Zacarías said that she was willing to die as long as she could fight. She paid for the ultimate price. Some sportspeople are comfortable with such decision. It was her choice. But there are people that know better, and understand that, at the very least, some times boxers at the very least need extra rest or surgery.

Tragedies cannot be fully prevented in combat sports or boxing overall. But there are fights that seem to be a recipe for disaster. We have a couple of examples this week.

First, on Friday Yulihan Luna (MEX, 21-3-1) will expose her World Boxing Council World Female Bantam Title in Gómez Palacio, Mexico, against Susy Kandy Sandoval (MEX, 10-18), who she beat via Split Decision in 2018.

Their record difference is dismal. The worst is that Susy is 41 year-old and has lost seven fights in a row. Seven. Of her last thirteen. Her last win was in 2015.

There is literally no way it can be justified that she is a world-class contender, let alone a deservedly World Championship contender, let alone against the boxer that last year beat Mariana Juárez (MEX), the best of all time in the weight.

One day later, in Ekaterinburg, Russia, tough, unbeaten Tatyana Zrazhevskaya (RUS, 11-0) will dispute the ‘interim’ version of the same title that will be fought for in Mexico one day prior. First of all. Luna is not injured and should be fighting Zrazhevskaya. There is no need for an interim.

Secondly, and a reason to worry, her rival is Jessica González (MEX), who has a record of 7-5-2 and has not won her last fights. Her last win came seven years ago and her last fight was three years ago. 

The same criticisms apply: González is not a world-class contender, does not merit a World Title fight, and seems to be serving as cannon fodder.

Boxers should not be treated as cannon fodder. Especially not against World-class fighters. Especially not when you have just witnessed a tragedy that reminds you that heavy mismatches can result in horrible consequences. This is an unacceptable action by the World Boxing Council.
  1. Paralympic Heroes. The People’s Republic of China convincingly topped the medal tally of the Tokyo 2020 Paralympic Games, with a total of 96 gold medals, ahead of Great Britain’s 41, USA’s 37 and the Russian Paralympic Commitee’s 36. Para Badminton and Para Tae Kwon Do made their Paralympic debuts. 43 year-old Lisa Gjessing (DNK), a four-time Para Tae Kwon Do World Champion, won a deserved gold. Eleven-time Para Badminton World Champion Cheah Liek Hou (MYS) took gold as well.
  2. Dame Sarah Storey won her 11th and 12th Paralympic gold medals in Para Cycling by winning the two C5 Road Cycling events: C5 Time Trial and Road Race. She extended her reCurtis McGrath became the most successful Para Canoeist / Para Kayaker of all time after taking a gold medal in each of the Men’s Kayak KL2 and Men’s Va’a VL3 events. He is the only sportsperson to win gold in Para Canoe and Para Kayak in the same edition of the Paralympic Games. He had previously won a gold in Rio 2016 and 10 World Championship medals.
  3. Just two years ago, teenager Ambra Sabatini (ITA) was on her way to her athletics training when a truck hit the scooter where her father was driving her. As a result, she had to have her left leg amputated. She immediately took Para Athletics. Two years later she won gold in the Women’s 100 meters T63, just aged 19, with a World Record, in an emotional Italian 1-2-3. A true example of Paralympianism.
  4. Curtis McGrath became the most successful Para Canoeist / Para Kayaker of all time after taking a gold medal in each of the Men’s Kayak KL2 and Men’s Va’a VL3 events. He is the only sportsperson to win gold in Para Canoe and Para Kayak in the same edition of the Paralympic Games. He had previously won a gold in Rio 2016 and 10 World Championship medals.
  5. cord as the most successful Para-cyclist of all time, once again. These were her 16th and 17th Paralympic gold medals, considering her previous medals in Swimming. Also impressive was Jetze Plat (NED), who won the men’s H4 Handcycling Road Race and Road Time Trial, a few days after winning the Men’s Paratriathlon PT1.
  6. The cold rivalry, again. Canada won its 11th Women’s Ice Hockey World Title, by beating the United States of America 3-2 with a golden goal, in Calgary. USA had won their 9th title in the 2019 tournament.
  7. Third time around. Primož Roglič (SVN) won the Vuelta a España for a third time in a row after he won the last Stage’s Time Trial. He is one off the record set by Roberto Heras (ESP) of four, also three of them in a row. Enric Mas (ESP) was the best local rider and second overall. Fabio Jakobsen (NED) won the Points Classification and Michael Storer (AUS) won the Mountains Classification.
  8. Golf Champions. Patrick Cantlay (USA) won the PGA Tour Championship, by winning the season-defining tournament. He won four PGA Tour events, more than anyone else in the 2020-21 season, including the last two. He was the fourth best in the last tournament but won on the handicap points that his season gave him. In Women’s Golf, Team Europe defeated Team USA in the Solheim Cup, successfully defending the trophy they won in 2019. This time, as visitors.