Amanda Serrano picks up her thirtieth win by stoppage!
Even with the emergence of undisputed champions Claressa Shields, Katie Taylor and Jessica McCaskill, Amanda Serrano is arguably seen as the best female boxer of this era by many boxing circles. The seven-division champion has held a total of nine major titles which is the most for any female fighter in boxing history! Some will criticize her resume as a few of her title wins were against less than marquee opponents. However, she still holds a piece of women’s boxing history. She will continue to build on that when she takes on three-divisional champion Daniela Bermudez.
News within the boxing world surrounding Serrano over the last year has not been good. Boxing fans were let down in a major way when Serrano was expected to face undisputed lightweight champ Katie Taylor in 2020, only to turn the fight down as negotiations were on the brink of being finalized. The Puerto Rican phenom claimed a dispute with Matchroom Boxing promoter Eddie Hearn over money and travel issues stemming from a change in the initial fight date as the causes. Regardless of the reason, this left a sour taste in the mouths of boxing fans who couldn’t wait to see how Serrano would fair against a talent like Taylor.
Who is Daniela Bermudez?
Meanwhile, Bermudez does not have a major following outside of her native Argentina. However, her deeds are known. She doesn’t spend too much time in one division as she looks to always stay active. In the process, she is willing to fight anyone within or around a division she campaigns in. By her fourth year as a pro, she became a WBO bantamweight and super flyweight champion. In her eighth year, the 31 year-old added the WBO super bantamweight belt to her collection.
Immediately after that win, she dropped back down to bantamweight and made five defenses of her title before picking up the IBF bantamweight title in her last bout. This bout will mark the first time she fights at featherweight.
Needless to say, Bermudez has earned her position for this matchup. But, will she last against one of the best!
STARTING OUT FAST!
Defense was not a priority in this bout! From the opening bell, both women met each other in the center of the ring and threw lots of punches. While Bermudez looked to land as much as she took early, the problem is she doesn’t have much power. Tallying only ten knockouts in twenty-nine wins, she did not have the power to really hurt Serrano.
Meanwhile, the seven-division champ is known for getting opponents out of there. Her punches landed with much more authority and at times backed-up her highly aggressive opponent. A knock on Serrano was that she got hit too much by a one-dimensional opponent. The reason being she had “knockout” on her mind and wanted it bad. Bermudez has lost three times and has never been stopped. She is as tough as they come. Serrano is an excellent boxer and should have paced herself much more than she did. If the knockout comes, it comes.
Given the lack of pacing and the amount of punches she ate early, there is a case for anyone to have given at least one of the first three rounds to Bermudez.
ADJUSTING WHEN NEEDED
As a true champion, Serrano realized she needed to focus more on dictating the pace of the fight. By the fourth round, she no longer indulged in a slugfest. She started bouncing on her toes, setting up her straight left behind the jab in the southpaw stance and countering Bermudez as she rushed in. If the challenger got too close, Serrano utilized her ability to attack the body viscously. The boxing ability of the seven-division champion started to come alive!
As the fight moved into the championship rounds, the Argentinian fell significantly behind on the scorecards. Being a one-dimensional fighter, she didn’t have a plan B. All she knew was to come forward, and stay active which did not work for her once Serrano made the adjustment to box.
Furthermore, the fight was on the home-soil of the champion. Therefore, the three-division champion needed to conjure up some power for a miracle knockout. A knockout would come but not for the challenger!
In round nine, Bermudez ran directly into double-hook combination to the body. After a delayed reaction, she backed up in pain, doubled over, turned her back to Serrano and dropped to her knees. You can see the pain on her face as she winced trying to regain her legs. Body shots like this can make a fighter lose their legs in an instance and the pain is excruciating. Unable to regain her equilibrium, the referee counted her out!
WHAT’S NEXT!
Serrano successfully made her first defense as a featherweight unified champion. There is no question she would be a problem for any fighter she steps into the ring with. That begs the question of “can we see her in the ring with another fighter that is just as talented as her?” When asked about a possible bouts against junior lightweight WBO champion Mikaela Mayer, WBA featherweight champ Jelena Mrdjenovich and revisiting a mega-clash against Taylor. Her response was clear.
“I want to become undisputed. I want to be the first undisputed champion coming from Puerto Rico!”
By: EJ Williams
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