Marcela Acuña is a female professional boxer from Argentina, who is known by her nickname ‘La Tigresa’ or ‘The Tigress’. She is noted for having won a world title on her very first match. Aside from being a top boxer, Acuña also has a black belt in Karate.
Acuña was born Marcela Eliana Acuña on October 16, 1976. As a young girl, her mother wished for her to become a ballerina, but it was not to be for Acuña. At age seven, she visited a boxing gym. Her first trainer was Ramon Chaparro, he would later become her husband.
When Acuña was 12, she earned a black belt and by age 14, she was a South America’s champion for her division. By the time she was sixteen, she had already made successful defenses of her title. In 1995, she retired from karate due to her pregnancy.
She returned to contact sports, this time to compete in boxing. Her first match earned her a world title. She also fought against Christy Martin in 1997. The match was held in Pompano Beach, Florida. The game was shown nationally. She, however, was dropped on the 10th round, still she managed to finish the game on her feet. Despite her loss, fans and critics alike hailed her performance.
Acuña won her second world title against Lucia Rijiker in 1998. The match was held at Connecticut. Her second world title caused controversy owning to the fact that she had no previous boxing experience. It became instrumental in her decision to retire. In 2001, she returned to the game and played in the first women’s boxing match to be sanctioned by the Argentine Boxing commission.
In 2002, she fought and won against Patricia Quirico. She also fought and defeated Carmen Montiel that same year. She met Montiel for a rematch on June of the same year, Acuña won again. In 2003, she fought and won against Regina Halmich, Ana Davila Ferreira, Montiel, and Pinock Oretega.
In 2004, she knocked out Daysi Padilla and Anna Camilla Santos. In 2005, she won against Maria Elena Miranda.