Holly Holm sparring with UFC champ Jon Jones (photo via Full Court Press)

By Full Court Press (via press release)

ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. (January 26, 2013) – Less than 24 hours after the World Boxing Council (WBC) Female Championship Committee ordered a mega-fight between undefeated WBC welterweight champion Cecilia “First Lady” Braekhus(21-0, 5 KOs) and 14-time, three-division world championHolly “The Preacher’s Daughter” Holm (32-2-3, 9 KOs), Braekhus’ promoter, Sauerland Boxing, notified Holm’s promoter, Fresquez Productions, that Braekhus had instead agreed to fight 45-year-old Mia “The Knockout” St. John (47-12-2, 18 KOs) on April 13 in Denmark.

Fresquez has announced that Holm (2-0) will be fighting on a Bellator mixed-martial-arts event February 28 at Santa Ana Star Center in Rio Rancho, New Mexico. “We’re not waiting around to fight anybody,” Fresquez noted. “Holly can be a world champion in MMA, too. We can’t make Braekhus fight Holly. Unfortunately, the dilemma for Holly is that there just aren’t any big names left for her to box, at least those ready and willing to fight her.”

The WBC had awarded the distinction of the Diamond Belt for the Braekhus-Holm fight because “it is regarded as one of the best fights in the history of female boxing.” Sauerland and Fresquez had discussions prior to the WBC’s order and, if the promoters were unable to reach an agreement – negotiations have now broken off due to Sauerland’s announcement that Braekhus is fighting St. John – that the WBC will conduct a purse bid Friday, February 15 at its headquarters in Mexico City.

Sauerland has reportedly requested an exception from the ordered mandatory defense for Braekhus in order for her to fight St. John. Fresquez has requested an answer from the WBC regarding how the Braekhus-Holm purse bid will proceed, as well as having additionally petitioned the World Boxing Association (WBA) to order its welterweight champion, Braekhus, to fight No. 1 challenger Holm in a mandatory defense.

Last December, Sauerland sent a video tape to Fresquez and media outlets, in which Braekhus challenged the WBC & WBA No. 1-rated Holm to a Sauerland-proposed July fight in Las Vegas, which was quickly accepted, pending final terms.

“This is an embarrassment for our sport,” Fresquez said. “Holly Holm is the Queen of Boxing and she was ready to fight Braekhus. They’ve been using Holly’s name for the last two years, so they could build Braekhus’ name, and we’ve been chasing her for that long. Based on their decision to fight Mia, they obviously aren’t serious about fighting Holly. I don’t understand why they challenged Holly and then, after we had accepted their challenge, ducked her again. Maybe they expected certain demands from us, giving them an easy way out of the fight, to make them look good in the media and public. In that video, Breakhus made a big deal about Holly being knocked out by (Ann Sophie) Mathis, but Holly showed the heart of a champion by sticking to her game plan to win their rematch. Braekhus used Holly’s same game plan to beat Mathis. Sauerland and Braekhus have turned their backs, once again, on being in the greatest women’s fight of all-time, which is another black eye for women’s boxing.”

St. John is a two-time world champion who has lost six of 11 fights since her 2005 defeat by way of a 10-round shutout decision (100-90 on all three judges’ scorecards) to Holm.