Kenia Enriquez chases world title dream against Gabriela Alaniz

In July 2016, I wrote a column for The Ring magazine that called for the five fights in women’s boxing that needed to be made as soon as possible.

Heather Hardy vs Shelly Vincent. Done.

Cecilia Braekhus vs Erica Farias. Done.

Two others – Amanda Serrano vs Jelena Mrdjenovich and Delfine Persoon vs Layla McCarter – never happened. But perhaps my biggest disappointment was never seeing the bout between Seniesa Estrada and Kenia Enriquez.

I guess two out of five ain’t bad. But it ain’t good, either, especially when it comes to Enriquez and her career in the subsequent eight years.

In 2016, Enriquez and Estrada were back-to-back Prospect of the Year winners. Tijuana’s Enriquez was 17-1 and a former WBO flyweight champion. East LA’s Estrada was 7-0 and already the talk of the town.

But the fight never happened. Fair enough, it happens all the time. But while Estrada went on to become a legitimate star and a unified 105-pound champion, Enriquez has wallowed in boxing limbo. She’s had just 11 fights since July of 2016, and while she won them all, adding the interim WBC flyweight and junior flyweight titles to her trophy case, she’s largely been ignored on the world stage while still fighting to get a bout with “full” champ Gabriela Alaniz.

“I’m stuck in the same situation I was when I was in 108, for political reasons,” said Enriquez through translator (and MMA star) Alejandra Lara. Enriquez held the interim WBC belt at 108 pounds from 2019 to 2020, but never got a shot at the full belt. Now she sits in the same place at 112 pounds, but she’s trying to remain positive.

“I remind myself every day that I am the best in the world, and I want to show that,” she said. “So I cannot be mediocre. I need to do my best every day because I know I am. I need to be ready.”

Most recently in action in February, when she shut out Maria Salinas in defense of her interim belt, Enriquez has been in talks with Heather Hardy to get that shot at Alaniz, and with the Brooklyn force being strong in the former world champion, “The Heat” has been working the phones, email and social media in attempt to get Enriquez back to where she should be.

“I’m waiting for a contract with the possibility of this fight that I’ve been waiting so much time for,” said Enriquez, who was brought to Hardy by another MMA star, Ilima-Lei Macfarlane. The connections from that end of combat sports is strong, and with her boxing career stalling, Enriquez even considered a move to the world of armbars and headkicks. And is still considering it.

“I’m waiting for the possibility,” she admits. “I want to compete, and I’ve been training jiu-jitsu and everything else to get ready, because financially it’s a better option right now.”

But is she any good? There’s no one better to ask than Lara, a former world title challenger in the Bellator promotion,

“She’s really, really good,” said Lara. “Even without that long of a time training jiu-jitsu and kicking, she’s a high-level athlete and that’s a big advantage. And the experience of fighting that makes her a world champ makes her good in every sport.”

That’s a positive for the 30-year-old, but not for the sport of women’s boxing, which, frankly, has let Enriquez down. So while fighters like Katie Taylor, Claressa Shields, Serrano and Estrada have gotten the opportunities, seized them and made the most of them, Enriquez lays in wait, hoping that her best years are still ahead of her.

“I have no regrets,” she said. “What happened, happened for a reason. I’m working right now to change my life to get better opportunities to be included in this group and in the rise of boxing for women. My moment is coming, so I’m patiently training and waiting.

So, Ms. Enriquez is an optimist?

“I am optimistic because I know I have the talent and I’m not a beginner,” she said. “Right now, I’m trusting Heather and waiting for offers. I want to hear what it’s out there for me.”