Originally Ana Julaton was to challenge for Melissa Hernandez’ WIBA Super Featherweight title this weekend. The bout had been scheduled to take place on the Shobox off-television undercard on Friday in Temecula, California. Then several weeks back the title fight was moved a day to the undercard of Timothy Bradley’s title defense against Nate Campbell. With about a week to go, the Julaton camp received word that the fight would be moved again, this time to September. Undaunted, Julaton and her camp still have Hernandez in their sights as they continue to architect what would be an upset of one of the top female fighters in the game.
Julaton (4-1-1, 1 KO) of Daly City, California had been trained for most of her professional career by Freddie Roach. In the year since her last fight, a close decision loss to Dominga Olivo for the WBC International Super Bantamweight title, Julaton decided she wanted to make some changes. One change was her desire to remain closer to her Bay Area home while she trained, rather than travel down to Roach’s Wild Card Gym in Hollywood, California.
“We were going to L.A. often and going down to the Wild Card to work with Freddie and being able to see Manny [Pacquiao] work out and things like that,” recalls Julaton. “One of the things I missed out on was just being around the people who support me, it was a different vibe. Not taking anything away from L.A., but the Bay Area is definitely my home. There is some connection I feel with that when I am training, especially when it gets tough.”
In her quest to train close to home, Julaton hooked up with noted trainer Nonito Donaire Sr. and his nephew Arvin Jugarap, who had recently opened the Kennel Boxing Gym in San Leandro, California. Together, Donaire and Jugarap have taken the task of reinventing Julaton’s style from her successful amateur technique to a more power-based approach. “We are just working a lot on her power, getting her physically fit with her core, legs and arms, because we are changing up her style to our style of fighting,” explains Jugarap, who serves as Julaton’s strength and conditioning coach. “So she really needs a strong, physical body.”
Donaire, who has never before trained a female fighter, has altered his coaching to fit Julaton. “[Training a female] is a lot different because males are a lot stronger than female fighters,” explains Donaire. “But she is getting the power now. Before it was more pitter patter, she tried to throw a lot of punches. I want her to fight outside, because most of her fights she was fighting inside. I want her to change that.”
Julaton has been pleased thus far with her new training team. “It has been great. I feel really honored to have had the opportunity to work with Freddie and then work with another great trainer in Senior,” says Julaton. “For me, I feel like I could not ask for anything more. I feel like I have been given these opportunities that most boxers don’t get in their entire careers. I am just really honored.” Donaire’s approach has meshed well with Julaton. “He tailored it more for me, and made it work for me, as opposed to making boxing more into a general sport,” says Julaton. “For that I am really happy and thankful. He is really experienced and knows how to talk to me and how to deal with me.”
In order to prepare Julaton for a world-class female in Hernandez, Nonito Sr. enlisted the services of his son Glenn Donaire, a world-class flyweight planning his own ring return. Julaton’s improvement as camp has progressed has made an impression on the younger Donaire. “When she first came into the gym, she could not even hurt me,” says Glenn. “I thought she needed to work more. But now, she punches like a guy. She made my mouth bleed with just a jab. I’ve been boxing for fifteen years and I have never been cut, except for a headbutt. With my dad and my cousin helping her, she has improved. She hits harder. She is going to start knocking those girls out. She punches like a man now.”
The Donaires have studied Hernandez, who Nonito Sr. refers to as “Lady Camacho” because of her style similarities to former champion Hector Camacho, and prepared Julaton for her idiosyncrasies in sparring. “I looked at her a couple times and the way she moves and what she does,” says Glenn. “I am way a lot faster than that girl. She kind of telegraphs her punches and she is not really that quick. She throws the overhand right and switches. That is what I did [with Ana]. This girl here is going to be a monster. When she gets hit with Ana’s punch, she can run. If she doesn’t then she is going to get knocked out.”
Knocking out Hernandez, who has never been stopped in fourteen professional fights against a who’s who in women’s boxing, would be quite a feat for Julaton. The Daly City native is preparing for a long, tough fight when she meets Hernandez. “I am not trying to look for any knockouts or anything like that,” admits Julaton. “I’m just going to follow the game plan and that is what I am going to stick to. Whatever happens, happens. Melissa is a very experienced fighter. She has fought a lot of really good fighters and she has had a lot of competitive fights.”
In addition to stepping way up in class, Julaton is moving up in weight and coming back from a year layoff. However, Julaton sees neither factor as a disadvantage going into the fight. “It makes it a little more fun,” says Julaton of fighting at super featherweight. “I don’t have to watch what I eat so much. I can think of it two ways. I can say, if I go up in weight, that it gives my opponent an advantage. Or I can think of it another way and not think of it at all. As long as I listen to my team, and I am able to have that advantage over my opponent, then weight should not be an issue.”
Taking the Hernandez fight just seven fights into her career fits into a bigger plan Julaton has for career and life after boxing. “Right when I turned pro I told myself I might not continue when I hit the age of 30. I just recently turned 29,” says Julaton. “I only have a year left and I only have this body once in my life. Before I start to move on to a different chapter in my life, I want to be able to say I did all that I can. I don’t want to be 60 and say I should have done this or should have done that. I want to be efficient with my time. I want to do what I feel is right for me right now, both mentally and physically. Just go with these big, big fights. I feel I am ready.”
The new tentative date for the fight is September 18th at the Chumash Casino in Santa Ynez, California. The postponement, more than a month’s time, requires some adjustments in camp for Julaton. “We are just going to have her rest for a week and then slowly pick up the training again,” explains Jugarap. “We are going to give her a break so she can relax and heal, because she works hard. We put her through rigorous training here and she does it without complaints. This one week break for her is going to feel good for her. Right after the week break we will get right back to it.” Nonito Sr. feels the delay could work to their benefit as they continue to transform Julaton’s fighting style. “I think [the postponement] does not affect Ana’s performance because we have more time and more training,” says Nonito Sr.
Some who follow women’s boxing may question her timing as she attempts to upend one of the sport’s top fighters, but Julaton is out to prove the naysayers wrong and now instead of later. “The challenge is definitely there,” admits Julaton. “I figure why not. If I want to do well in this sport, I am going to have to put myself through a lot of challenges anyhow. So for me to take this jump, I am going to get into it down the line anyhow. So why hide from it. Just work towards it and see what happens.”
Taking the world title from Hernandez in just her seventh fight would be a monumental achievement, but Julaton has a much larger goal. “We are trying to get women’s boxing and women’s fighting up onto the same level as the male fighting,” says Julaton. “Hopefully it will come down at some point, but for now we just have to wait and see.”
Mario Ortega Jr. can be reached at [email protected].
