IFBA lightweight champion Chevelle Hallback has a thirty-five fight record and has fought boxing veterans such as Bonnie Canino, Lucia Rijker and Layla McCarter. Among those thirty-five names are Melissa Hernandez (11-1) and Holly Holm (25-1), who will meet December 4 in a defense of Holm's WIBA welterweight title. Chevelle fought Hernandez to a draw in February 2008 in a rough toe-to-toe battle, and lost a unanimous decision to Holm in May 2007. What does Hallback think of the pending "Bad Blood" bout between Holm and Hernandez? Is Melissa Hernandez too small for Holly Holm? Will their styles make for an exciting match? What did Hallback observe in her bouts with both women that could define who emerges the winner?

 Hallback is honest and to the point about her fight with Holly. "The fight with Holly was a tough one for the mere fact, I was trying to fight at very high altitude after coming off an almost two year layoff”, she said, and continued. "I really did not think that would be a major factor coming into the fight, but after the first round, I realized that it was a huge problem and it was very difficult (to impossible) for me to adjust. But not making any excuses", she said, "Holly had a great fight plan and fought a good fight. She had great ring general ship and was able to keep me at bay. Even though she never hurt me during the fight, I can say I still felt her punches and there was some power behind her punches," she admitted. "I was very lethargic and slow in that fight and really didn't throw that many punches and Holly took great advantage of that and made me look like an overrated fighter that night. It was a good fight for her but if I would have waited and prepared a little better for the altitude, it would have been a great fight for the both of us."

Fighting Melissa Hernandez presented a very different challenge for Hallback. "My fight with Melissa was tougher then my fight with Holly because I was in the ring with a good friend," she said. "I know you’re supposed to leave friendship out the ring and pick it back up once the fight is over, but that was easier said then done...and as you notice, I said WAS. Anyway, I held back a lot when I fought Melissa and I only did enough, what I thought I needed to do, to win the fight." Still Hallback gives her friend credit for her determination and her ability to face her toe-to-toe. "Melissa did a great job of adjusting to the point where she was able to avoid a lot of my punches and was able to land quite of few of her own during the later rounds. I was very proud of Melissa that night because she came up in weight to fight a much stronger fighter, adjusted when she needed too, and fought with a lot of heart. Even though I held back some on my punches, I still hit Melissa with some clean hard shots and she was able to weather the storm."

Both fighters possess strengths and even have some chinks in their armor; Hallback is acquainted with those points as well. "Holly's strong points," she said, "is that she seems to stick to her game plan no matter; she is very technical, she sticks to basic boxing, and to top it all off, she is very well conditioned. The only weak point that I see is that even though she moves a lot in the ring, she only seems to move in one direction. That could be a problem if she ever runs into a fighter the can capitalize on that. What she recognizes in Melissa is "she is a very talented fighter with a lot of heart and determination. She also has great movement going both directions. She is willing to get in there with anyone, at any size, and willing to mix it up. Her weakness is that sometimes she gets a little wide when throwing her punches and that could be a problem if she is fighting against a fighter that punches straight down the pipe. She does not sit down on her punches and, a lot of times, that minimizes her power. If she is going to continue to fight the bigger girls, she is going to need some power to keep them off of her."

After thinking about both fighters and the bout, Hallback regards it as a good match due to both Holly and Melissa’s competitive spirit. "I think this is going to be a good fight just because you have a fighter that is determined to keep the status of the best female fighter pound for pound against a fighter that says she is the best female fighter pound for pound." Her prediction on who emerges the winner? "I do not have a prediction," Halback said. "Both are friends of mine and I want them both to do a great job and show that female boxing is here to stay."

"Bad Blood" is a joint promotion by Fresquez Productions Inc., and Isleta Casino and Resort. Tickets are available through Fresquez Productions Inc., 8218 Louisiana Blvd. NE , Albuquerque , NM 87113 , 505-884-7484 and via the internet at http://isleta-casino.com/entertain/tickets.cfm). For more information and updates view www.fresquezproductions.com and www.hollyholm.com.