Lindenmuth seeking world boxing title

ALBUQUERQUE — One night in Bangkok — Saturday, May 31 — to be exact, Katherine “Kat” Lindenmuth, of Bosque Farms, will fight for a Women’s International Boxing Association world championship.

Lindenmuth will throw leather with Thailand’s Phunnakran Karnjanawong for the vacant WIBA minimum weight title.

“It’s always exciting to go into someone’s hometown,” said Lindenmuth following a news conference last week in Albuquerque.

“I feel like it’s a test of character. I take it like a diamond,” Lindenmuth said of the pressure. “It makes me more beautiful, stronger.”

The two fighters will enter the ring at about the same weight, around 105 pounds, but there will be notable differences.

Lindenmuth is 35 years old, while her opponent is only 19.

“I’m in the best shape of my life,” Lindenmuth said, with her energy level high.

Another difference is the size advantage that Karnjanawong will have over the diminutive Lindenmuth.

“Everybody is taller than me, and everybody is longer than me,” she said. “I just may have to work a little bit more to get inside.”

Despite the 16-year age difference, both Lindenmuth (6-4) and Karnjanawong (4-6-1) have yet to reach a dozen professional fights in their careers.

“I think Kat and her are a very good match,” said Anthony Rosales, who trains Lindenmuth and owns gyms in Los Lunas and Albuquerque.

“I think Kat is ready. She’s been ready a long time. I think we’re going to come back victorious,” predicts Rosales.

Since entering the professional ranks almost exactly three years ago, Lindenmuth, a mother of three, has traveled across the country and Canada in pursuit of boxing glory.

“I’ve been really blessed to travel as much as I can,” she said. “I don’t think there can ever be a cap to it.”

Next stop, Bangkok, Thailand.

“We need to step out and take a new adventure,” Rosales said. “You have to take chances,” is the way he puts it, considering opportunities for female fighters are limited.

Lindenmuth is ready to go.

“It’s exciting but a little nerve-wracking going that far,” a 12-hour flight, across the ocean for the first time. “We’re mentally preparing for everything that comes with it.”