Kaliesha West
Kaliesha West is an American former professional boxer who held the WBO female bantamweight and International Female Boxers Association super-bantamweight World titles during her career.
Biography
West has a multi-cultural heritage. Her father, Juan, is of Nigerian, Cantù, Irish, and Seminole Indian descent while her mother, Melissa, is of Mexican, French, Spanish, and Native American heritage. She was first introduced to boxing while attending her father's matches. Despite initial reluctance to involve her in the sport, Juan eventually taught her the basics and then took her to a boxing gym.As an amateur, West had over 100 fights and won numerous tournaments and honors including the 2002-2003 Junior Olympic championships, 2003-2004 Silver Gloves and the 2002 125lb National Golden Gloves championship for ages 13-14.
Shortly after her 18th birthday, West made her professional boxing debut on February 23, 2006, at San Manuel Indian Casino in San Bernardino, California, recording a four-round unanimous decision win over Suzannah Warner. Women were now allowed to box in the Olympics during this time, and this became the deciding factor to why West turned professional.
On September 18, 2010, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, West won the vacant WBO female bantamweight World title with a seventh-round technical knockout victory against Angel Gladney. She made boxing history, as she became the first boxing champion from the Inland Empire region in Southern California.
West successfully defended her title against Ava Knight on 18 June 2011, Jessica Villafranca on 20 August 2011 and Claudia Andrea Lopez on 14 April 2012.
On October 6, 2012, at the Finish Line Sports Grill in Pomona, California, West won the vacant International Female Boxers Association World super-bantamweight title with a unanimous decision success over Christina Ruiz.
West retired from professional boxing in 2017 and was inducted into the International Women's Boxing Hall of Fame in 2023.
Professional boxing record
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
| 22 | Win | 17–2–3 | Kirstie Simmons | UD | 6 | 2017-09-23 | Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa, Rancho Mirage, California, U.S. | |
| 21 | Loss | 16–2–3 | Olivia Gerula | UD | 8 | 2014-08-15 | Crowne Plaza Hotel, Gatineau, Quebec, Canada | |
| 20 | Win | 16–1–3 | Christina Ruiz | UD | 10 | 2012-10-06 | Finish Line Sports Grill, Pomona, California, U.S. | Won vacant |
| 19 | Win | 15–1–3 | Claudia Andrea Lopez | MD | 10 | 2012-04-14 | Auditorio Ernesto Rufo, Rosarito, Mexico | Retained WBO bantamweight title |
| 18 | Win | 14–1–3 | Jessica Villafranca | UD | 10 | 2011-08-20 | Casino Black Pyramid, Manzanillo, Mexico | Retained WBO bantamweight title |
| 17 | Draw | 13–1–3 | Ava Knight | SD | 10 | 2011-06-18 | Sports Arena, Pico Rivera, California, U.S. | Retained WBO bantamweight title |
| 16 | Win | 13–1–2 | Angel Gladney | KO | 7 | 2010-09-18 | Staples Center, Los Angeles, California, U.S. | Won inaugural WBO bantamweight title |
| 15 | Win | 12–1–2 | Vannessa Guimaraes | TKO | 5 | 2010-06-26 | Jockey Club del Perú, Lima, Peru | |
| 14 | Draw | 11–1–2 | Anita Christensen | MD | 10 | 2010-03-26 | Arena Midt, Kjellerup, Denmark | |
| 13 | Draw | 11–1–1 | Ada Vélez | MD | 6 | 2010-01-21 | San Manuel Indian Casino, San Bernardino, California, U.S. | |
| 12 | Win | 11–1 | Rolanda Andrews | UD | 6 | 2009-08-01 | Agua Caliente Casino Resort Spa, Rancho Mirage, California, U.S. | |
| 11 | Loss | 10–1 | Ava Knight | UD | 8 | 2008-11-18 | Table Mountain Casino, Friant, California, U.S. | |
| 10 | Win | 10–0 | Elizabeth Cervantes | KO | 1 | 2008-07-23 | Morongo Casino Resort & Spa, Cabazon, California, U.S. | |
| 9 | Win | 9–0 | Elizabeth Moreno | UD | 6 | 2008-06-27 | Morongo Casino Resort & Spa, Cabazon, California, U.S. | |
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Flor Verdugo | TKO | 2 | 2008-03-29 | Gimnasio Oscar 'Tigre' García, Ensenada, Mexico | |
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Carly Batey | SD | 6 | 2007-08-17 | Harrah's Resort Southern California, Valley Center, California, U.S. | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Elizabeth Cervantes | UD | 4 | 2007-03-30 | Pechanga Resort Casino, Temecula, California, U.S. | |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Stella Nijhof | UD | 6 | 2006-11-18 | Conference Center, Monterey, California, U.S. | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Maria Contreras | UD | 6 | 2006-07-08 | Conference Center, Monterey, California, U.S. | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Elizabeth Cervantes | UD | 4 | 2006-05-19 | Quiet Cannon, Montebello, California, U.S. | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Tonia Cravens | UD | 4 | 2006-03-25 | Fantasy Springs Resort Casino, Indio, California, U.S. | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Suzannah Warner | UD | 4 | 2006-02-23 | San Manuel Indian Casino, San Bernardino, California, U.S. |