Larry Crazen knew early on that his youngest daughter, Jenna, had very high expectations.
At the age of four, Jenna grabbed her father’s ear, held it close to her face, and declared, “Daddy, Daddy, I’m going to be the best in the world.”
That journey begins April 27 at Fresno State’s Save Mart Center.
Jenna will make her professional boxing debut in a four-round welterweight bout with Golden Boy Promotions against a yet to be announced opponent. Tickets can be purchased online.The fight begins at 3:15 p.m.
Jenna, an 18-year-old Redwood High School senior, had a successful amateur career with a record of 29 wins, 3 losses, and 4 KOs. Crazen is a member of USA Boxing’s youth team and was ranked No. 1 nationally in his weight class at 146 pounds in 2022.
Former NABF junior welterweight champion Jose Ramirez of Avenal will headline the co-main event vs. Lances Barthelemy. The main card will be broadcast live on DAZN.
“This is something I’ve been waiting for ever since I started training and fighting,” Jenna said. “Now, what’s surreal is that I’m fighting. I’m on the undercard of Jose Ramirez, who I respect as a fighter. I’m going to the Save Mart Center and watching his fight. I watched him, so it’s great to be on his undercard.”
Jenna began her martial arts training with wrestling at the age of four and started boxing in 2014.
After pleading with her father, Jenna, then 8 years old, decided to join the Visalia Police Activities League. He trained with boxing coach Louis Gallardo, and Cleese’s fighting career took off, often sparring against men.
“She was being punched in the face, and for every blow she received, she would throw one or two back,” Larry said. “That was her mindset, and I thought, ‘Oh, I’m in trouble.'” She likes it. ‘And she did. ”
Jenna currently trains daily at the Visalia Pal boxing facility just north of Oval Park.
“I can’t believe it,” Jenna said. “My father wasn’t a big fan of me taking up boxing. My older brothers did it. He didn’t want to see younger girls getting beaten, but I liked it. I love it. I basically live here now. I couldn’t imagine my life without it.”
Creason credits Visalia PAL with launching her boxing career.
“If it wasn’t for this place, I wouldn’t be able to box,” Jenna said. “I would never be able to compete at the level I have before, both nationally and internationally. It was all thanks to Visalia PAL, which helped me achieve these goals.”
Jenna still remembers the first day she put on her mitts in the ring.
In the first sparring session, she broke her opponent’s lips.
What happened to her second opponent?
A collapsed nose.
Her third?
Another busted nose.
All of my training partners that day were men.
“From that moment on, I loved it and knew this was something I could be better at,” Jenna said. “Having wrestling and karate background gave me the grit I needed for it. Other than that, it was fun. I love it.”
Raised by a single father, Jenna’s path to the professional level would not have been possible without her father’s support.
“I think he definitely had a harder job than I did,” Jenna said. “He raised me single-handedly. I wish I could have made his job easier because I wanted to say I was a decent kid, but he helped me with everything. He helped me grow in my mindset from an early age of what I should be like for this fight, for any fight, for training.
“I said that even if I was with Team USA, they would see a different way of thinking about me and think I was from the military. But no, that’s what my dad taught me. , the way he raised his daughter to be a strong, independent young woman, and that’s exactly what he got, and hopefully more.”
