In boxing, the spotlight often shines on the action, but for Mike Bazzel, it’s the unseen battle in the corner that matters most – his partnership with the fighter as he works to keep them in the fight.
Two weeks ago at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas, Bazzel found himself on the frontlines as Amanda Serrano’s cutman during her rematch with Katie Taylor. Despite Serrano’s gritty effort, Taylor emerged victorious by unanimous decision. The fight made history as the most-watched women’s boxing event ever, but for Bazzel the real work started well before the final bell.
“First, I couldn’t see a thing,” Bazzel recalled about the corner. “The LED screens on the corner pads were three times the size of normal ones.” He sat waiting as Serrano’s brother-in-law and trainer, Jordan Maldonado, and sister, Cindy, watched the action from the side of the ring. Moments later, Bazzel heard it – Cindy spotted something he couldn’t: “She’s cut.”
Armed with adrenaline and Vaseline, Bazzel knew it was time to go to work. The contrasting styles of the southpaw Serrano and the orthodox Taylor made for a physical bout, and Serrano indeed suffered a cut above her eye. “Head-butts were going to be an issue,” Bazzel said.
To make matters worse, Bazzel had to navigate the quirks of the Texas commission. “We couldn’t use zip-lock ice bags, which are colder and better for the fighter. Instead, we had screw-top bags, which just didn’t cut it,” he said.
Bazzel often returns to a gym adage: “It’s me and the fighter working together.” As head-butts from Taylor took their toll, Serrano suffered an ear injury and a cut that kept reopening. While Bazzel’s work was witnessed by millions, he remained focused on keeping Serrano in the fight. “By the end, the cut was drooping like a drape,” he said, adding that the doctor was impressed by his efforts but reminded him, “I won’t stop this unless Amanda can’t continue.”
Anyone who knows Serrano knows that wasn’t a concern – she would fight until the end. Serrano, as she has done countless times, dug deep, outlanding Taylor in the championship rounds, according to CompuBox. But Bazzel believes the final decision didn’t reflect the true nature of the fight.
“If Amanda wins one of those last rounds, she wins the fight,” he said. Though Taylor lost a point, Bazzel argued that another point could have been deducted. “If the referee had taken a point from Taylor for the head-butts – which were clearly affecting Amanda – it could have been a draw.”
Though the loss stings, it sets the stage for a potential trilogy between two of boxing’s greatest. “It’s bittersweet,” Bazzel said. “But if they fight again, I know Amanda’s going to be ready. She’s a warrior.”
Lucas Ketelle is a proud member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and author of “Inside The Ropes of Boxing” (available on Amazon). Contact him on X @LukieBoxing.
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