AMY HAYES GRACES ?PAYBACK?
By Maloney L. Samaco
PhilBoxing.com
Mon, 03 Dec 2007
For the first time in Philippine boxing history, a popular and voluptuous international lady announcer in the person of Amy Hayes graced the introduction of the protagonists. This happened during the ?Payback? at the Araneta Coliseum featuring Rey ?Boom Boom? Bautista winning against Antonio ?Barrio? Meza by a unanimous decision.
Hayes was born in Wyndotte, Michigan, near Detroit, on November 24, 1973. Her father was a broadcaster. During her school days she played basketball and softball. She became interested in boxing during her teen years, and after her first appearance as a ring card girl, she decided instantaneously to become the world's first female ring announcer.
"I remember being 17 and working as a ring card girl in Detroit," she says. "I looked at the ring announcer and thought, I want to be that. Screw carrying this card around!" The 28-year-old athlete became a Hawaiian tropic girl and modeled for 10 years then tried the field of broadcasting. She is called the "Ultimate Sports Chick."
She's a bombshell and at 5'5" with blonde hair and brown eyes, her body has what it takes to allure boxing fans, mostly men. Her ?Tale of the Tape? is 36-25-36 and her favorite line is ?It?s time to separate the men from the boys!?
Amy holds a degree from the Specs Howard School of Broadcast Arts, and she posed for Maxim in 2001 and Playboy in 2002. Presently, she is a regular broadcaster on Fox Sports Net and formerly an announcer on ESPN2's Friday Night Fights, she has also announced on USA, ESPN, and Showtime, considered as the biggest boxing network.
"I want to be the first woman to announce a major title fight," she said in Playboy. Her favorite boxer is Shane Mosley, but the guy she would like to KO is the most distinguished announcer Michael Buffer. "One time before a fight he threatened to walk if I went out there," she said. "I know he's the best, and I was nervous, I think he felt the heat, knowing that a young woman could actually go up there and carry off the announcing duties without it being a joke."
Finally, after a friend's father recommended her to a boxing administrator, Amy got another break at her dream at the Packard Music Hall in Warren, Ohio, in 1999. This was her first stint as a radio announcer. Not long after that, she made an appearance in 2000 on ESPN2's Friday Night Fights, becoming the first woman to announce a fight on television.
Amy became the first female to announce a world title bout, the fight between Steve Forbes vs. David Santos for the IBF world superfeatherweight championship in 2002. She is now a fixture in the sport's televised identity, and in the sport's commentary, with her own weekly column at www.sportsfans.com. Amy lives in Kentucky where she is able to pursue her hobby of horseback riding.
Click here to view a list of other articles written by Maloney L. Samaco.
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