Amanda Serrano To Rematch Heather Hardy in Undisputed Title Defense
Undisputed women’s featherweight champion Amanda “The Real Deal” Serrano (44-2-1, 30 KOs) returns to action on August 5. Her opponent will be a familiar foe, as Serrano will fight a rematch against former WBO featherweight champion Heather Hardy (24-2, 4 KOs) on August 5 at the American Airlines Center in Dallas, Texas on DAZN pay-per-view. The two previously fought each other in September 2019, with Serrano winning a unanimous decision to capture the WBO featherweight strap.
A seven-division world champion, most insiders consider Serrano one of the elite and most popular women’s boxers. But the 34-year-old has been out of action since February 2023, when she earned a hard-fought unanimous decision victory over Erika Cruz Hernandez to win the undisputed title at 126. Her next fight was to be a rematch against Katie Taylor in May. Unfortunately, Serrano had to withdraw due to a hand injury.
IS THS REMATCH NECESSARY?
Now healthy and fully healed, The Real Deal is excited to back into the ring. Hardy has been one of the elite featherweights in the world for several years. The ex-featherweight champion comes into this contest on a two-fight winning streak.
Some boxing observers on message boards have asked why this rematch is taking place. They argue that there are better fighters out there for Serrano to face such as world-ranked featherweights Nina Meinke, and Licia Boudersa. But as far as the undisputed champion is concerned, fighting Hardy again was the right thing to do and is a matter of principle, as she explained in the following post on social media:
Despite her rationale, there will still be those who will look down on this matchup. But the fight still carries some importance. Should Serrano win, she hopes her next bout will be a rematch with Taylor later this year. At age 41, most insiders view Hardy as a significant underdog. But she’s a warrior and hopes to score what would be considered one of the bigger upsets of 2023.
