Louisa ‘Bang Bang Lulu’ Hawton is set to return to the ring for just the second time since 2019.
The 39-year-old contender faces Viviana Ruiz in a scheduled ten-round flyweight bout on September 7 at HBF Stadium in Perth, Australia.
The bout marks a homecoming for Hawton (11-2, 6 KOs), a former WBO 108-pound titleholder who hasn’t fought in Perth in nine years. It will support the Thammanoon Niyomtrong-Alex Winwood WBA strawweight title fight.
In the fight, Hawton will jump up two weight classes. Despite the seven-pound jump, she is confident of showcasing the results of a productive training camp in the US
“I was in the United States training there in Vegas with Derrick Harmon at the Top Rank gym, which was amazing,” Hawton told The Ring. “Training went great. I always love my training so I always give 120% effort when I’m in the gym. It is a place where I feel I can feel at one with myself.
“I’m going to put on some weights. When the opportunity arose to fight in front of a crowd for the first time since 2015 and back in Australia, I couldn’t turn it down. Fighting in Perth is something I’ve wanted to do for a very long time, so you’ve got to take the opportunity when it comes, right?
“It’s special to me because it’s so long. I have a lot of people who always want to see me fight and ask me when I fight back in Australia, back in Perth. I’m especially excited to be a part of this card because Alex is on his way to a world title. He’s someone I’ve worked with over the years and we’ve hung out together, so to see him at that level is amazing. To be part of this show with him, I think, is special.”
The connection between Hawton and Winwood goes back further than the gym.
“A lot of people don’t know this, but Alex grew up in the town I grew up in,” Hawton said. “He’s younger than me, but we actually went to the same high school. Erin McGowan also went to the same high school as us. She is older than me.
“So if Alex gets this job done and becomes a world champion, then there will be three world champions that have come out of Coodanup High School. How’s that for the odds?
“That tells you a lot about the school, doesn’t it?” she adds with a laugh. “Champions are made in hard places.”
Hawton is a skilled boxer with smooth footwork and a good punch.
Her body attack is exceptional, especially the left rip. Consistently working underneath will be critical for Hawton against the naturally bigger Ruiz (8-1, 4 KOs). The plan is to slow down the hard-hitting 41-year-old Colombian-born Australian, also a noted body puncher.
“I think it’s going to be a great fight,” Hawton said. “I think it’s definitely going to be a crowd pleaser. I’m sure we can steal the show too. Viviana, she has an amateur pedigree and now she has stepped into the pros. I know she’s going to bring the fire and she’s going to bring the fight and she’s coming in to defend her (regional) title, so it’s going to be a good fight.”
The move to 112 pounds is only meant to be a temporary one.
At just 5’0″, Hawton has boxed most of her career at atomweight. She can still easily make strawweight, where Ring champion Seniesa Estrada (26-0, 9 KOs) reigns supreme.
“I would love to fight Seniesa Estrada,” Hawton said. “It’s a fight I’d love to have, especially because she’s unquestionably at my weight. Then you have Yokasta Valle; she fought her way to the undisputed championship. Both of those two fights, I think, are big fights for me that I would love to make in the very, very near future.
“These are the fights I’m looking for and the ones I’d like to bring back to Australia one way or another. Perth is certainly committed to bringing great events back to Western Australia.”
The Western Australian government has recently shown a keen appetite for hosting major sporting events. The most notable example was the Vasiliy Lomachenko-George Kambosos Jr IBF lightweight title fight in May.
It wasn’t that long ago that this would have seemed like a pipe dream. Now that could be a real possibility.
“It was amazing, it was so good,” Hawton said. “Our Prime Minister, Roger Cook, is investing a lot in bringing events to Perth to showcase our beautiful city for tourism and things like that. To be part of this show and potentially make these big fights and bring them back to Perth is something I really want to push for.”
