Starlet Shea ready for the spotlight

FAME comes in many forms but even as John Duddy prepares to grab the spotlight in front of a sell-out crowd of adoring fans at Madison Square Garden tomorrow night, a female boxer on the undercard can already claim she has been lauded at the Oscars.

While Derry’s middleweight star Duddy prepares to face American Anthony Bonsante at the Garden Theatre in defence of his IBA world and WBC Continental Americas crowns, Maureen Shea will step into the ring tomorrow night for the latest bout on her journey towards a title shot of her own.

The unbeaten 26-year-old superfeatherweight from the Bronx, with a father from Kerry and a Mexican mother, is ranked number one in the world by the WBA, and No 4 by the WBC after just nine professional fights and faces Eva Lidia Silva in a scheduled eight-round contest.

She goes into the contest with her Irish Ropes promoters nicknaming her ‘the Million Dollar Baby’ and for once in a sport where hyperbole is the default mode, there is a genuine claim to moniker.

For it was Shea that sparred with Hollywood actress Hilary Swank as she prepared for the boxing movie of the same name which would earn her a best actress Academy Award in 2005.

Shea, then training as an amateur in preparation for the New York Golden Gloves Tournament, was working out at Gleason’s Gym in Brooklyn with her trainer Hector Roca, who had been given the task of preparing Swank for the boxing elements of the film.

“She was working in the gym with Hector for about a week and he told her, ‘well, you’re gonna get in the ring with Maureen’,” Shea recalled.

“So she got in the ring and she trusted me and that meant a lot.

“I showed her how to work and helped her out and worked her so she felt the effects of a fight and we worked off each other. She turned out to be one of the best sparring partners I’ve had, she was great and picked it up so fast. It was a wonderful experience.”

Recalled Roca: “Hilary stood up well to Maureen — she’s a good client and a brave lady.

“When we got her fighting, she took blood from Maureen’s nose. But then she says ‘Steady’ and ‘Sorry’, and I stop the fight and I tell her that you never say sorry.

“So then I tell Maureen, ‘Hit her!’ And Maureen does, and she takes blood from Hilary’s nose. And that way, the actress, she learns real boxing.”

The respect, it seems, was mutual, because Swank twice turned up at Madison Square Garden to see Shea box in the Golden Gloves. The boxer was invited by Swank to the Million Dollar Baby premiere and when the actress’s performance as the heartbroken fighter Maggie Fitzgerald earned her an Oscar last spring, Swank thanked her sparring partner in her acceptance speech.

“You know what, she’s incredible and she really did something with that movie,” Shea added.

Now it’s the boxer’s turn to do something in the ring. Shea got her first outing on a big card courtesy of Irish Ropes last year when she was on the Duddy-Shelby Pudwill card last March 16 in her fourth pro fight. She is now at 9-0 with four knockouts to her name and has been on more major cards, including Evander Holyfield’s comeback promotion in San Antonio, Texas, last November.

“I’ve definitely improved since last March because I’ve been tested in so many different ways in the ring, endurance wise I’ve been able to bring out a lot more and skill-wise I feel I’ve done so much growing and I’ve learned so much so that with every fight I’m able to inject a new thing that I learned in the gym. So I’m just putting it all together.”

Having an Irish-Mexican heritage should also stand to her in the boxing ring.

“I can box and I can fight,” she said. “I’m very strong like an Irish fighter and very go-forward like a Mexican boxer. I throw a lot of punches and I can stand toe to toe, my inside game is great and I’m very comfortable outside. And my leg strength comes from my Irish side! They’re my father’s Irish legs. So I’ve stamina and I can also box, got the rhythm for that and I can pretty much adapt to anything my trainer wants me to, transform into any type of fighter.”

Having already earned a number one ranking, it would not be unreasonable to expect talk of a title challenge in the near future but Shea is surprisingly touchy on the subject.

“Would you ask a male boxer who’s 9-0 about when they’re going to get a title shot?” she asked.

The response to that is no, but a male boxer would never be a No 1 contender at 9-0 and these things come much quicker in a career for females.

“That’s very true,” Shea conceded, “but I also feel that maybe possibly I can get more experienced. When I go for a title I want to be the best Maureen Shea can be. So I want to get the experience.

“I only had 12 amateur fights so I want as much ring experience as I can get and that is the best thing for me, regardless of my (status as the) No 1 contender or mandatory challenger.”

While she learns the ropes Shea sees Duddy as an ideal role model.

“I just love fighting on John’s undercards. I admire Duddy very much as a fellow boxer. His work ethic is very similar to mine and he has this class, the way he conducts himself, it’s nice to see that back in boxing. I hope to bring the same thing.”