Few people are ever excited to reach the big 4-0, but Kelsey
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The Road Warrior
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Jeffries isn’t one of them.
Eumsung, South Korea – Few people are ever excited to reach the big 4-0, but Kelsey “The Road Warrior” Jeffries isn’t one of them.
In fact, she actually fought her way just to get there.
The Hollister resident defended her IFBA (International Female Boxers Association) Featherweight title last Sunday after beating Jun Yun Jung of South Korea by a unanimous decision (298-276), and improved her record to 40-9-1.
The big 4-0, indeed.
It was also the 50th fight of Jeffries’ career, and marked her eighth title defense since earning the IFBA belt in 2004, her third title defense this year alone.
But defending the title overseas wasn’t as easy as blowing out 40 candles.
For a titleholder with a lengthy resume such as Jeffries, traveling to South Korea to defend her own belt against a lesser opponent wasn’t ideal and usually is not in the cards for most established prize fighters.
However, with a sweetened pot, Jeffries traveled halfway across the world to put her title on the line, as well as add another notch in her “Road Warrior” belt.
“It was the toughest fight in my career, mentally and physically,” Jeffries said. “I knew going in I had to just win … I had to push myself through it, and I’m lucky I did it.”
Jung’s record fell to 3-2-1 with the loss, but Jeffries, along with her manager, Bruce Anderson, felt the 30-year-old fighter from Seoul, South Korea likely had an extensive amateur career. Said Anderson, “Her record was not who she was.”
“She was a great fighter,” Jeffries said. “She wanted my belt and it showed.”
The Hollister boxer, though, thought Jung might steal her belt from the details she had, or lack thereof, leading up to the fight.
For one, Jeffries was not supplied with any video of Jung, and with the fight held in Jung’s country – with local judges scoring the title fight – Jeffries figured she’d need to do a lot more than just win the fight on points.
Even at the weigh-in, Jung couldn’t stop smirking.
“She was confident and happy,” Jeffries said.
If the cards weren’t stacked against the Featherweight champ enough already, Jeffries entered into the ring Sunday only to step foot on a soft mat.
Jeffries described the mat as a memory-foam mattress, and Anderson likened it to the soft sand at low tide.
For a fighter known for her speed and agility, the soft mat would limit Jeffries’ movement.
“Someone of my style, which is a fast mover, it’s not good for it,” Jeffries said. “It was a punchers ring and not a good movers ring.”
But Jeffries began to win the crowd over as the fight progressed, even stirring a “Kelsey! Kelsey! Kelsey!” chant in the later rounds.
The South Korean fans showed their admiration for Jeffries after the experienced boxer fought off plenty of pressure from Jung, and even busted her nose open in the third and seventh rounds.
“I knew right there that I took some heart out of her,” Jeffries said about seeing Jung’s nose bleeding.
Jung continued to apply pressure through the final round on the undersized Jeffries, who was giving up 2 and 1/4 pounds to her opponent.
“I probably fought the best fight of my career,” Jeffries said. “It was a great fight … My mental toughness and drive pulled this out for me.”
Anderson said he plans on resting his 40-win fighter for the time being, as Jeffries just wrapped up her fourth fight of the year.
Although no upcoming opponent is slated for Jeffries at the moment, she is hoping to keep her next fight within the borders of the United States. Jeffries believes that fighting abroad can often leave a foreign boxer at a disadvantage.
“It’s one of those fights where you have to do more to win the fight.”
Even when the most recent match was complete, and Jeffries was confident she had won the bout convincingly, even then, the IFBA champ thought she might not win the decision.
From not seeing any tape of her opponent prior to the fight, to traveling overseas to defend her title, to weighing in against a smirking, “unknown” opponent, forgive Kelsey Jeffries for not giving anyone the benefit of the doubt.
“She thought she was gonna steal my belt,” Jeffries said. “She certainly surprised me, but not enough, I guess.”
