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By Lyle Fitzsimmons - His voice doesn’t rattle the rafters. And his scowl is hardly that of a demon.
But when trainer Sherman Henson needs to get a fighter’s attention during that crucial 60-second stretch between rounds… he’s got his ways.
“To be honest, a lot of the actual words are on the spur of the moment,” the sleepy-eyed 53-year-old said this week, in a rare break from work with a full roster of amateurs and pros. “And I guess the phrase I use most often is, ‘Don’t let him come in the door. Don’t let him get back in.’
“But the key thing for me is paying attention to what’s going on during the rounds themselves. That’s when my mind is starting to work. A trainer can’t go in rattled. It’s Psychology 101 in there. You have to know how to push buttons, and some fighters need more motivation than others.”
A California native who’s made his home base in Florida for the last 10 years, Henson is taking to the road in an even bigger way this week – hopping a plane to Denmark with longtime client Chevelle Hallback for her Saturday night challenge of unbeaten WBA/WBC/WBC women’s welterweight champion Cecilia Braekhus on the Evander Holyfield-Brian Nielsen undercard in Copenhagen.
It’s the second fight outside U.S. airspace for the Hallback/Henson tandem, which was successful in defending the WIBA 130-pound against Fujin Raika in Tokyo in January 2005 and once again 10 months later against Belinda Laracuente in Edmonton, Canada.
Now 39 years old, Hallback has gone just 3-2-1 in a half-dozen fights since those business trips, including a pair of losses to WIBA 140-pound champion Holly Holm – most recently in March 2010.
As a result, a win against Braekhus – 17-0 with four knockouts – is vital to maintaining the viability of Hallback’s still-stated goal of becoming the first woman to appear in a feature bout on HBO.
Braekhus has reigned since March 2009 and has fought in Denmark four times.
“There’s no doubt it’s an all-or-nothing bout for us,” Henson said. “She is very much motivated for this one. A win could open up some very big doors and send a message to major promoters to go ahead and take a chance on one of the very best pound-for-pound boxers in the world. She’ll fight whoever is willing. There’s no picking and choosing here. If they want to fight, we fight.
“It’s a fickle sport. And too many promoters have been preoccupied with putting together shows with pretty girls. But the thing is, pretty girls don’t win fights, fighters do. Chevelle is a fighter. And if she comes home with those belts, it could really catapult her right away toward where we want to be.” [Click Here To Read More]
But when trainer Sherman Henson needs to get a fighter’s attention during that crucial 60-second stretch between rounds… he’s got his ways.
“To be honest, a lot of the actual words are on the spur of the moment,” the sleepy-eyed 53-year-old said this week, in a rare break from work with a full roster of amateurs and pros. “And I guess the phrase I use most often is, ‘Don’t let him come in the door. Don’t let him get back in.’
“But the key thing for me is paying attention to what’s going on during the rounds themselves. That’s when my mind is starting to work. A trainer can’t go in rattled. It’s Psychology 101 in there. You have to know how to push buttons, and some fighters need more motivation than others.”
A California native who’s made his home base in Florida for the last 10 years, Henson is taking to the road in an even bigger way this week – hopping a plane to Denmark with longtime client Chevelle Hallback for her Saturday night challenge of unbeaten WBA/WBC/WBC women’s welterweight champion Cecilia Braekhus on the Evander Holyfield-Brian Nielsen undercard in Copenhagen.
It’s the second fight outside U.S. airspace for the Hallback/Henson tandem, which was successful in defending the WIBA 130-pound against Fujin Raika in Tokyo in January 2005 and once again 10 months later against Belinda Laracuente in Edmonton, Canada.
Now 39 years old, Hallback has gone just 3-2-1 in a half-dozen fights since those business trips, including a pair of losses to WIBA 140-pound champion Holly Holm – most recently in March 2010.
As a result, a win against Braekhus – 17-0 with four knockouts – is vital to maintaining the viability of Hallback’s still-stated goal of becoming the first woman to appear in a feature bout on HBO.
Braekhus has reigned since March 2009 and has fought in Denmark four times.
“There’s no doubt it’s an all-or-nothing bout for us,” Henson said. “She is very much motivated for this one. A win could open up some very big doors and send a message to major promoters to go ahead and take a chance on one of the very best pound-for-pound boxers in the world. She’ll fight whoever is willing. There’s no picking and choosing here. If they want to fight, we fight.
“It’s a fickle sport. And too many promoters have been preoccupied with putting together shows with pretty girls. But the thing is, pretty girls don’t win fights, fighters do. Chevelle is a fighter. And if she comes home with those belts, it could really catapult her right away toward where we want to be.” [Click Here To Read More]