Jennifer Han Explained

Jennifer Han
Weight:
Height:5 ft 6 in
Reach:66 in
Birth Date:25 June 1983
Birth Place:El Paso, Texas, U.S.
Style:Orthodox
Boxrec:506472
Total:26
Wins:18
Ko:1
Losses:5
Draws:1
No Contests:3

Jennifer Han (born June 25, 1983) is an American professional boxer who held the IBF female featherweight title from 2015 to 2020, and was the first world champion boxer from El Paso, Texas.

Professional career

Han made her professional debut on July 31, 2009, losing via majority decision (MD) over four rounds against Melissa St. Vil at the Pan American Center in Las Cruces, New Mexico.[1]

After compiling a record of 10–2–1 (1 KO), she challenged reigning champion Ji-Hye Woo for the IFBA featherweight title on March 23, 2014, at the Wooseul Gymnasium in Haenam, South Korea. Han suffered the third defeat of her career, losing via ten-round MD. Two judges scored the bout 97–95 and 96–93 in favor of Woo while the third judge scored it a draw at 95–95.[2] [3]

Two fights later, she was scheduled to face Helen Joseph on April 18, 2015, with the vacant IBF female featherweight title on the line. However, Joseph was forced to withdraw from the bout after she was unable to obtain a VISA to enter the U.S.. Fatuma Zarika stepped in as a late replacement, with Han emerging victorious via unanimous decision (UD) to capture the vacant IBF female Intercontinental featherweight title.[4] The fight with Joseph for the vacant IBF world title was rescheduled for September 19, and took place at the Don Haskins Center in El Paso, Texas. Han captured her first world title via UD with the judges' scorecards reading 98–91, 98–92 and 97–92. With the victory, Han became the first world champion boxer from El Paso.[5]

After two successful defences of her world title, Han faced Olivia Gerula on February 17, 2017, at the Don Haskins Center. At the pre-fight weigh-in, Gerula weighed 1.5 lbs over the maximum weight limit, making her ineligible to contest for the IBF championship. With the title still on the line for Han, she made a successful defence, winning via UD with all three judges scoring the bout 100–89.[6]

She made one more defence–a UD victory against Lizbeth Crespo in February 2018[7] –before taking two years away from the sport after giving birth to a child in May 2019. Han returned to the ring on February 15, 2020, scoring an eight-round UD victory against Jeri Sitzes in a non-title bout.[8]

Han relinquished her title in July 2020,[9] and moved up to the lightweight division. On September 4, 2021, at Headingley Rugby Stadium in Leeds, England, she challenged reigning champion Katie Taylor for the undisputed female lightweight championship losing the contest by unanimous decision.[10]

Switching weight divisions again, Han's next fight was a unanimous decision loss to IBF and WBO female super-featherweight world champion Mikaela Mayer at the Orange County Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa, California, on 9 April 2022.[11]

Professional boxing record

ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes
27Loss18–5–1 Mikaela MayerUD10Apr 9, 2022
26Loss18–4–1 Katie TaylorUD10Sep 4, 2021
25Win18–3–1 Jeri SitzesUD8Feb 15, 2020
24Win17–3–1 Lizbeth CrespoUD10Feb 17, 2018
23Win16–3–1 Olivia GerulaUD10Feb 17, 2017
22Win15–3–1 Liliana MartinezUD10Oct 15, 2016
21Win14–3–1 Calista SilgadoUD10Apr 29, 2016
20Win13–3–1 Helen JosephUD10Sep 19, 2015
19Win12–3–1 Fatuma ZarikaUD10Apr 18, 2015
18Win11–3–1 Christina RuizUD8Jun 28, 2014
17Loss10–3–1 Ji-Hye Woo MD10Mar 23, 2014
16Win10–2–1 Lesly MoralesUD6Oct 5, 2013
15Win9–2–1 Karen Dulin UD8Jun 22, 2013
14Loss8–2–1 Claudia Gutierrez4Oct 27, 2012
13Win8–1–1 Kita WatkinsUD4Aug 24, 2012
12Win7–1–1 Nohime Dennisson UD6Dec 3, 2011
11Win6–1–1 Tammy FranksUD4Nov 11, 2011
10Win5–1–1 Davrene Morrison4 (6), Oct 15, 2011
9Win4–1–1 Kerri HillUD4Sep 15, 2011
8Win3–1–1 Lisa Lozano UD4Aug 19, 2011
7NC2–1–1 Jessica GonzalezNC6Apr 9, 2011
6NC2–1–1 Jessica GonzalezNC6Apr 2, 2011
5NC2–1–1 Andrea CortinaNC6Mar 26, 2011
4Win2–1–1 Geni TaylorUD4Feb 11, 2011
3Win1–1–1 Crystal Hoy4Apr 10, 2010
2Draw0–1–1 Nydia Feliciano 6Mar 12, 2010
1Loss0–1 Melissa St. Vil4Jul 31, 2009

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Jennifer Han vs. Melissa St. Vil. boxrec.com. February 17, 2020.
  2. Web site: BoxRec: Jennifer Han vs. Ji-Hye Woo. July 14, 2021. BoxRec.
  3. Web site: Knight. Bill. April 16, 2015. Boxing: Visa problems cancel Jennifer Han's world title fight. July 14, 2021. El Paso Times.
  4. Web site: Knight. Bill. Boxing: Jennifer Han dominates Fatuma Zarika in featherweight championship at El Paso County Coliseum. July 14, 2021. El Paso Times.
  5. Web site: Chavez. Felix F.. February 9, 2020. Top fights for El Paso world champion boxer Jennifer Han. July 14, 2021. El Paso Times. en-US.
  6. Web site: Cohn. Brandon. February 18, 2017. Jennifer Han Retains Her Title with a Unanimous Decision Over Olivia Gerula. July 14, 2021. KROD.
  7. Web site: Mendez. Daniel. February 18, 2018. Jennifer Han retains her IBF title in front of her home crowd. July 14, 2021. The Prospector.
  8. Web site: Ochoa. Adrian. February 16, 2020. Jennifer Han defeats Jeri Sitzes by unanimous decision. July 14, 2021. KVIA-TV.
  9. Web site: July 21, 2020. Sarah Mahfoud Has Been Elevated To IBF World Featherweight Champion — Boxing News. July 14, 2021. Bonxing247.
  10. Web site: Katie Taylor defeats Jennifer Han to retain world lightweight titles. 4 September 2021. ESPN. 2024-04-29.
  11. Web site: Mikaela Mayer dominates Jennifer Han to defend WBO and IBF super-featherweight titles in California. Sky Sports. 2024-04-29.