Exclusive Boxing Interview: Mary Jo Sanders

The Last Starfighter

This Friday, Ring Magazine’s 2005 female fighter of the year, Mary Jo Sanders, will make her second appearance at Cobo Hall in downtown Detroit when she meets Valerie “The Wolfe” Mahfood.

The 33 year old Sanders, 23-0 (7), is the current IBA Middleweight Champion and has previously held world titles at light middle, welter and light welter. Mahfood, 19-12-3 (9), has held world titles at light heavyweight and super middle.

Regarded by many as the best pound-for-pound fighter in women’s boxing, the daughter of former Lions tight end Charlie Sanders is poised to take on the biggest names in the sport.

But in her interview with SaddoBoxing, she’s careful not to overlook a very dangerous opponent in Mahfood, who has stepped in the ring against Laila Ali and holds a knockout win over Ann Wolfe.

As the last grains of sand slip away in the hourglass of Laila Ali’s career, Sanders is probably one of the last names on a short list of fighters Ali will to step in the ring against.

Mary Jo is well aware of the significance of not just a win Friday, but a decisive victory against a gatekeeper fighter in Mahfood. As Sanders eyes the future, she spoke to us about how her career has been crafted for an eventual bout with the daughter of “The Greatest”.

SaddoBoxing: How are you feeling?

Mary Jo Sanders: “I’m feeling pretty good.”

SB: How do you mentally prepare for this Friday?

MJS: “You just train a lot and just go over everything you know, like visualize how I want the fight to go and come into my own. Isolate myself a little bit and turn the phones off. Stuff like that.”

SB:Is there anything that Mahfood does that might give you trouble?

MJS: “Well, never one thing. You know that anybody has a chance because anything, if it lands the right way, it only takes one punch. I know she has a good right hand; it’s kind of a looping right hand. It’s nice to know that but I can’t forget that a hook might be coming.”

SB: I was looking at your record and you seem to be moving up steadily; is there anyone in particular you’re aiming to step in against?

MJS: Yeah. From the beginning we wanted to fight Laila. She was the best out there so yeah, we wanna make a fight with her and we’ve been talking back and forth, off and on for the past years. She didn’t really take it seriously because I was fighting at 140 and she was fighting at 168 or higher.

“Now she knows I’m fighting at 160 and she’s fighting at 168; she’s taking it seriously now. She did an interview, maybe a month and a half ago, [and] the interviewer asked who she’d like to fight and she did say my name. She’s taking a break from boxing right now and doing Dancing with the Stars”.

SB: Would a dominant performance against Mahfood be the sign you’d need to pursue a match with a Laila Ali or an Ann Wolfe?

MJS: “Definitely. Because I know when Laila fought Mahfood, that was her toughest fight to date. I knew that moving up I’d have to fight the bigger girls. I knew that for a fight against her, I’d have to be impressive.”

SB: With your bodybuilding experience would you be able to comfortably fight at super middle or would you ask for a catchweight?

MJS: “Oh, I’m comfortable. I didn’t believe but, [trainer] Jimmy [Mallo] told me even when I was fighting at 138 it wouldn’t be a problem. I haven’t lost any speed, wind or agility at this weight. You gain 20-25 pounds and as a woman you automatically freak out.”

SB: I saw your last fight against Gina Nicholas. I was really impressed how you dealt with her aggression and how you negated her offense. How much of that was polish and how much was natural?

MJS: “Oh gosh. Well thank you, first of all. We practice a lot and I seen a couple of her fight tapes and again I don’t get too caught up in what my opponent’s tactics are because I stick to my own game. In the back of your head you have all the things you think you’re going to do if she does this but you can’t have a blank canvas in your mind in case she does something else.

“We train for everything. You have to because you never know what your opponent is going to do because they might do something completely different.”

SB: Can you give the back story behind your father’s lucky sweater?

MJS: “Well, way back in October, 2000, I had fought in the world Toughwoman in Mississippi and my dad came down. He was doing some scouting for some college. So he came down and that was the sweater he was wearing at the time. He wore it and I fought four times that night and I won. And so he had no idea I was gonna turn pro but when I did he’s worn it every single time.

“So that’s his little security blanket. Every single picture we have of him he’s in the sweater. It’s been 24 fights. One of the referees said ‘I don’t know, is that the only sweater he has? Maybe the 9 kids wiped him out.’ He’ll wear it when it’s cold or he’ll wear it when its 90 degrees.”

SB: Did your father discourage you from boxing?

MJS: “A little bit. He tried everything from ‘No man’s gonna want you with no teeth,’ to ‘you’re gonna get man hands’. But he’s great, he’s totally supportive. He’s the first one there. He’s more nervous than I am.”

SB: Anything you’d like to say in closing?

MJS: “Everybody tune in. It’s going to be on ESPN. That’s Friday the 30th and I’m the main event and it’s live.”