Stephanie Simon will face her first southpaw of her professional career on Saturday.
Simon, a junior welterweight, is 2-0 (0 KOs). She takes on Tanishia Lopez, 1-0 (1 KO), at Thunder Studios in Long Beach, California. The MarvNation card will stream on DAZN.
Simon, a 30-year-old Marine with a deep amateur pedigree, will now face a technical battle as she has to adapt to the stylistic challenges a lefty poses.
“I would say it just feels a little different than what I’m used to,” Simon told BoxingScene. "I've been more aggressive with my power output and my selection of shots in sparring.”
John Pullman, Simon’s trainer, shared more details about their training.
“She had been sparring southpaws for two months leading up to the fight without knowing she’d fight a southpaw,” Pullman told BoxingScene. “It is a good experience for many different things she will encounter at the top of the sport.”
Simon credits Pullman, whom she started working with before her last fight, for adding dimension to her game.
“We’re six months in, so now I’m starting to understand the method to the madness, and I’m able to be a little bit nastier in the ring,” Simon said. “I'm landing the punches, and not amateur-style punches, how I used to throw. I would summarize that I’m being a little bit meaner this camp.”
Lopez, 39, is based out of San Jose, California. She competed regionally and holds an amateur win over Amy Minter, who would go on to become a national champion a few years later. Simon views fighting an unbeaten southpaw Lopez as the start of her upward trajectory.