Queen Latifah created the popular ladies anthem back in the late 80’s entitled “Ladies First”. It spoke about the strength, talent and determination that women poses and how not only should men put them first but also the individual female should put herself first. Well N5F has a first for the ladies. We hooked up with a young lady outta Miami Beach, FL that can put a straight thumpn’ on ya. She goes by the nickname “Stay-Lo” and she is our ‘FIRST’ female boxer/athlete to appear in our publication. She has the total package of skill, determination, style and personality that could definitely make her a household name in the very near future. She is full of energy, excitement and is anxious to take the world by storm. And if she continues opening up a can of whoop azz on her competition, we will hear and see more of her sooner rather than later.
Thanks for talking with us Stacey. Utica, New York is your birth place but you call Miami Beach, Fla. home now. What prompted your move to the sunshine state?
(SR) I self diagnosed myself as having a seasonal mood disorder. No but seriously, I came to visit Miami and I’ve lived here ever since. I knew I would be healthier and more productive in the sunshine.
Why were you so angry in your younger years?
(SR) I had a lot of chaos, fighting and negativity surrounding me when I was a little girl. My older sister was ‘a handful’ and my little sister was deaf so they got a lot of the attention. Plus being the middle child, I tried to be the mediator of all the noise. I held a lot of emotions in and it made me a sad and scared little girl. Later it turned into anger. Don’t get me wrong, there was always a lot of love, but it conflicted with the chaos. It comes with the territory in upstate New York I guess, cuz they’re all cooped up…I don’t know.
So this obviously was the sparked that lead to your interest in boxing?
(SR) Exactly! Boxing is my anger management.
Tell me about Lena Akesson and what role she played in starting your boxing career.
(SR) She was the reason I started boxing. I never knew what I wanted to be in my life until I met her. I’ll always love Lena for that. The first time I ever ran, in my life, I ran with her. 4 MILES NON STOP…BIG MISTAKE! She had a huge work ethic and me being 5’7! with my never quit attitude, it made for some pretty painful chin-splints...needless to say LOL. BUT I DIDN’T QUIT AND I STAYED RIGHT WITH HER. She showed me the basics of how a champion trains and then I took it to another level.
But I also understand that Ryan Wissow (WIBA President) was the one that actually got you on your way…right? How did the two of you meet?
(SR) He showed up in the gym I was training at. He would not stop talking, and LOUDLY! But he had some interesting things to say, so I listened. We hit it off from there. He would start doing break dancing moves in the gym and I would spin on my hands. Then we would get yelled at LOL. Now we’re on top of the world, and that’s all she wrote.
How did you get the nickname “Stay-Lo”?
(SR) It’s short for Stacey Louise a ‘double entendre’. It has two meanings because I’m a boxer, get it?? ‘STAY LOW, StayLo’…
Yeah I get it. You’ve worn some very interesting outfits into the ring. What’s behind your choice of attire and are you a BIG super hero fan?
(SR) I just thought it was cute to put hearts on my outfits in the ring. I was the first one to ever do something like that. In the ring I’ve been dressed as Wonder Woman, Super Girl and Cupid. I wore a Tutu skirt in the ring before also. I’m a trendsetter, very innovative, and creative. I just get different ideas and I don’t know why these things come to me. I think it’s because I’m a little obsessive compulsive. Everything has to match and be in order. A ‘higher order of thinking’ some call it.
Who’s currently managing/promoting your career and are you satisfied with the direction they have you heading in?
(SR) I’m self-managed and I’ve taken my career all over the world. I’m currently ranked #1 contender in the USA and #2 contender in the world according to Boxrec. I’m satisfied with the direction ‘I’m headed in’, no one ‘has me’ headed anywhere. I’m in control of my own destiny. I have other careers and I’m very successful. However, it gets discouraging because no one wants to fight you if you are dangerous and don’t have a manager enough to pay them to lose! So I only get fights that they think I will lose. It’s a very dirty and political business. I know I will get what I deserve in this life. I just roll with the punches.
What gyms do you frequent most when you are in training for a fight?
(SR) Right now I’m training mainly at ‘XTREME BOXING’ in Hialeah and I train sometimes at ‘TEAM NOGUEIRA MMA’ in Miami. But Xtreme is my home team and we work HARD. Any fighters out there wanna work hard, come check us out at XTREME BOXING GYM!!
You have a nice record (9-1, 4 KO’s) and have fought abroad on three occasions already (Japan & Germany). Was it a big adjustment for you fighting in other countries so soon in your career?
(SR) Big adjustment is an understatement!! I had won two fights overseas on two other occasions without a trainer in my corner. In Tokyo, Japan, they were very nice to me. Germany was a whole different ballgame. It was a world class situation and they were very smart. They outsmarted me because I went there alone without my trainer and my corner. We were fighting for 2 world titles! There was no way her million dollar team was gonna let me leave the country with the belts. Even if I knocked her out, they would have called it a draw. Call me crazy for going there alone, but I was THAT confident. I needed my trainer and I know that now.
That was a HUGE risk you took which leads me to my next question. Let’s talk about the only woman to have defeated you thus far, WIBF & WBC Female Featherweight Champion, Ina Menzer. What happened in your TKO loss to her?
(SR) I DIDNT GET TKO’ED, THEY CHEATED!! There is a big story about what happened to me over there in Germany. It’s called, “From a dream to a nightmare - the ordeal of Stacey Reile” by Ron Scarfone. I don’t like talking about it anymore. She hit me in the ear after the bell and they all acted like they didn’t see it happen. It actually ruptured my eardrum and messed up my equilibrium. I should have been given more time to recover. I got nothing. No instructions, no ice, no water, no support at all from my corner. The ‘substitute’ corner I had working with me, knew my ear drum was ruptured by the punch because it began to bleed and they said nothing. He was NOT my Miami trainer, and he is not qualified to be a trainer. After the fight he was very nasty to me, insulting me and yelling at my Dad. I knew it was to hide his shortcomings and the BS early stoppage. My Miami trainer is Cuban and he needed to be invited to enter the country and they did not send the proper documentation and now I know why. I’ve learned from my mistake and I’ve moved on. I was not beaten, I was cheated. It was not smart of me to go into a world class situation with a mickey mouse trainer in my corner first of all and especially in Germany. The fight is on You Tube and you can see I was winning the first three rounds until the punch in the ear after the bell ending round 3. I was a different fighter after that.
Wow, that’s a tough pill to swallow. Are you looking forward to a possible rematch with her? And if so, what will you do differently to get the victory this time around?
(SR) I definitely want to fight INA MENZER AGAIN! She couldn’t hurt me at all. When I hit girls to the body, they go DOWN! SHE HAD TO HIT ME IN THE EAR to hurt me. THEY HAD TO BREAK OUT THE HEAVY ARTILLERY FOR ME. I’M THAT DANGEROUS!!!! That’s why the Germans only posted photos and video of the round AFTER my ear was ruptured! This time around, I will have JORGE RUBIO in my corner, and I will KNOCK INA MANZER OUT!! Jorge brings the fire out of me. T hey know it. If I was so hurt and in danger in the fight, why stop it when I’m on my feet?? Why not LET HER KNOCK ME OUT??? RIGHT? That’s what the people would like to see. They were securing a win for her because everyone knows I get stronger in the later rounds.
You bounced back with a gritty TKO stoppage of your own against Crystal “Choo Choo” Delgado who was undefeated at the time and fought in her backyard of Houston, TX where she is very popular. I viewed this fight on your Myspace page and it was a real WAR! Was Crystal your toughest fight to date?
(SR) She was tough because she kept coming forward. I didn’t get hit hardly at all in the whole fight, even though she never stopped throwing punches. She was bigger than me, a southpaw, and had a head like a COCONUT. She had never been stopped with head shots. So I went to the body where she was soft in the middle. I dropped her with the right hand to the solar plexus twice.
As you previously stated, Boxrec.com currently has you ranked #1 in the US and #2 in the World which is very impressive after only 10 fights. What’s next for “Stay-Lo” and where do you see your career heading in the very near future?
(SR) Thank you. I’ve worked hard for my ranking. I have 3 very successful careers. I massage and personal train people for fitness and boxing all over Miami. I have a very high-end clientele not affected at all by the economy, so I am very fortunate. (Venetian Causeway, South Pointe & Star Island) I love my clients and I’m happy with whatever my life brings me. However, I deserve many world titles. I am a world champion caliber of fighter and I will not stop until I get to the belts. I have a fight coming up this month in Zenica, Bosnia where I will be facing Irma Balijagic-Adler for the WIBA Featherweight Championship. I took the fight on just 2 weeks notice but I feel confident that I will return home with the title.
I have no doubt that you will and we are definitely pulling for you to bring that title back to the US. How about giving me your Top 5 female fighters of all time.
(SR) I have a lot of respect for Anne Wolf and Emiko Raika because they came from nothing.
Pretty short list, what about the men…
(SR) I have a lot of favorite fighters for favorite reasons. It’s hard to say…
OK, do you think MMA will take the place of boxing in the years to come?
(SR) I love MMA, don’t get me wrong. I’m learning a lot of MMA stuff now actually like kicks, knees, elbows, submissions, throws, takedowns. When I stop boxing I will make the transition to MMA. I cannot switch careers as of this point because learning to kick messes up your boxing stance. MMA will never take the place of boxing though. It may make a big dent in the amount of people buying pay-per-view events for boxing and things like that. But to me, it seems like a lot of people don’t like to watch MMA. They say it’s too brutal. Watching them slice each others faces open with elbows, kicks and knees to the face. I can’t even watch it sometimes. It will never take the place of boxing. Boxing is prestigious.
Very well put. What other things you enjoy outside of boxing?
(SR) I enjoy all around fitness in general. I’m always studying to maintain my massage license and personal training certification. I love to travel and I have been all around the world. My next trip, I’m planning to study Thai massage in Thailand.
Let the people know how they can find out more about you and keep track of your flourishing career.
(SR) I’m all over the internet. StayLo4real on Twitter, Myspace, and Facebook. StayLo1 on Youtube and Photobucket. I’m always updating the public on my upcoming matches, articles or events in my Myspace blog.
It was a real pleasure getting to know you Stacey and we wish you the very best in all of your future endeavors. Do you have any final words or shout outs? (SR) I’d like to send my love and prayers to my Mom who is currently undergoing chemo treatment for stage 4 lung cancer. It’s very unfortunate, I’m trying to stay strong. One thing I know for sure is that it made me hungrier and angrier again. I feel sorry for my next opponent so stay tuned! Thanks to Randall, D and 954 magazine for having me be the “FIRST” female fighter featured in the magazine.
N5F sends out a special thanks to J.R. Alvarado, Lex Meade and the guys at CLUB KO in Pembroke Pines, FL for allowing us to use their spot for Stacey’s photo shoot. If you are looking to get in shape, definitely check these guys out at www.clubko.net and make it do what it do.
