Melissa McMorrow Wants Knight and Bopp – For a fighter the worst thing that can happen besides losing a fight is for the actual bout to fall out. For former two-time female WBO flyweight world champion Melissa “Mighty Mo” McMorrow (10-5-3, 1KO) it is nothing new.
“I am pretty used to fights falling out,” McMorrow said in an exclusive interview with the 2-Min Round podcast on the Leave It In The Ring network. “I have a lot going in my life so I always try to look at the positive side of things. With the fight falling out I get to go out for a good meal, maybe hang out with important people in my life.”
The 34-year-old McMorrow was scheduled to face Keisher McLeod-Wells of Brooklyn, New York, this past Saturday, June 11th, in Oakland, CA, near her hometown of San Francisco. According to Brian Cohen, advisor to McLeod-Wells, the 8-2, 1KO, fighter hurt an arm during sparring and was not able to travel out west to face the 4’11” McMorrow. The scheduled eight round bout would have been the first time McMorow would have fought in the U.S. in the last five years and the first time near her hometown in seven.
The fight would have been the rubber match in a trilogy that began in 2011 when McLeod-Wells won a six round unanimous over “Mighty Mo.” McMorrow took an eight round split decision five months later.
After a semi-pro soccer career in the United States and Brazil, a sport she has been practicing since the age of eight, McMorrow decided to try boxing after an invitation to a local gym.
“I love competition and I have always been a good athlete. I played soccer throughout college and after but the teams I played for always disbanded,” she said. “I joined an adult team but it wasn’t too competitive so I decided to take on boxing after I was invited to a gym. I am coordinated and decided to fight.”
A self-proclaimed fighter who looks to control the distance and timing, McMorrow went pro in June of 2008 with a four round unanimous decision over the tough Mayela Perez. Two fights later McMorrow suffered her first loss, a majority decision to Jolene Blackshear. In May of 2012, McMorrow traveled to Germany and promptly beat the previously undefeated homegrown Susi Kentikian for the WBO flyweight title.
“That has been my favorite fight, the most significant,” McMorrow shared. “It has been the biggest even though I had been there before against Arely Muciño, but this was bigger since Kentikian was so well-known in Germany.”
With the win McMorrow signed with the German promoter but nothing came from it. She has also fought five bouts in Mexico and with her last one, a win over Kenia Enriquez in February of 2015, in which she captured the WBO 112-pounds strap for the second time. She was contractually tied to Zanfer Promotions. Nothing materialized with them either.
Things might change for McMorrow, who by day works as an architect, she recently signed with new promoter Blueprint Promotions who has gone on a signing spree in the last couple of weeks. The company has also picked up former WBO bantamweight champion Kaliesha West, who fights in Mexico on July 1st, and Patricia Juarez, the sister of legendary Mexican fighter Mariana “Barbie” Juarez.
“I have signed with a new promoter and he is trying to get his company off the ground,” McMorrow explained. “He had nothing to do with this last fight. It was in the contract the (BluePrint Promotions) agreement would start after this fight.”
McMorrow explained she truly wants two more fights.
“I want to fight Ava Knight. We are both from California but we can’t find anybody to put up the money that fight deserves. I would also like to face Yesica Bopp but she’s all the way in Argentina and fights a division lower than me,” said McMorrow on Thursday. “Ava Knight is on the top of the list. I have thought of a rematch with Jessica Chavez or Mariana Juarez because I think I won both of those fights, but I don’t know if I can get a fair fight in Mexico with either of them. Ava Knight is one of the top fighters out there and I want to fight the best.”