Mikaela Mayer won a world title in a second weight class on Friday, defeating Sandy Ryan by majority decision to win the WBO welterweight title at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City.
One judge had it even at 95-95 while the other two scored it for Mayer (20-2, 5 knockouts), 97-93 and 96-94 in the ESPN televised main event.
The win comes in Mayer’s second attempt at securing a 147-pound title, having lost a split decision to IBF titleholder Natasha Jonas in January. Ryan of Derby, United Kingdom was making the third defense of her title, which she won in April of 2023.
“It was similar to how I thought it would go,” said Mayer. “I always said before that I respected Sandy as a boxer. She has a big pedigree just like myself, but I knew I was gonna beat her to the punch. I knew I was faster. I knew I was sharper. And that’s exactly what I did.”
The fight nearly never made it to the ring as Ryan, fighting for just the second time in America, was covered in red paint by an unidentified person wearing a hoodie as she made her way to the arena. Kay Koroma, the boxing trainer who advises Ryan and had previously worked with Mayer, had suggested to Ryan that she call the fight off. The incident only seemed to galvanize Ryan. When asked in a pre-fight interview whether she had anything to do with the incident, Mayer denied any involvement.
“It unsettled me at the start. Walking to the venue, I was shook up. And then it threw me off a bit of my game plan because I just wanted to fight,” said Ryan (7-2-1, 3 KOs)
“You seen at the start of the fight, I was handling her quite well on the jab. I was boxing her and then I started to pick it up. But then, I was obviously pushing it too hard.”
Mayer, a 2016 U.S. Olympian from Los Angeles, got off to a strong start in the first round, rocking the aggressive Ryan (7-2-1, 3 KOs) with a right hand. Mayer, though only half an inch taller at 5’9”, made full use of her range, controlling the fight in the first round by stepping to her left as Ryan failed to cut the ring off.
Ryan made began to step up the pressure in the third round, digging to Mayer’s body and stepping to her right to take away Mayer’s escape route. Even as Ryan stepped up the intensity, Mayer met her halfway, landing sharp combinations that caught the judges’ eyes. Mayer was clearly the better technician, but Ryan had more punching power and was physically stronger, leading to a great style clash.
Ryan landed her best punch of the fight in the opening moments of the sixth round as a left hook popped Mayer’s head back. Mayer got sucked into a firefight in this round, dishing out the punishment as well, but taking more than head trainer Al Mitchell and camp newcomer Kofi Jantuah would have wanted her to.
Mayer reestablished her boxing in the seventh round keeping the distance and then looking to time Ryan with right hand counters. Ryan opened up the eighth with renewed energy, landing big hooks as Mayer looked tired from her big round the previous stanza. Though Ryan had her best success in close, it was Mayer who was landing more effectively with uppercuts.
“She’s probably definitely the strongest person I’ve ever boxed. Not so much in her shots, but you could feel it in her body in the way she was trying to push me around the ring. But, you know, skill beats strength,” said Mayer.
“I want to finish what I started and go undisputed. You know, I came very close at lightweight. But my body outgrew that weight. I’m comfortable now. I feel like I’m stronger than ever. I’m still in my prime, as you can see. So I’m coming for the other champions.”
The victory rejuvenates Mayer’s career after falling to Alycia Baumgardner and Jonas in her last two title fights. Mayer had previously held the WBO and IBF titles at 130 pounds, making three defenses before losing a split decision to Baumgardner.
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