Alycia Baumgardner Decisions Mayer in Unification Grudge Match!
When Mikaela Mayer (17-1, 5 KO’s) collided with Alycia “The Bomb” Baumgardner (13-1, 7 KO’s), there was a great deal of hostility between them. The two talented women did battle in the belly of the O2 Arena located in Greenwich, London on a historical all-women’s card. Even better, theirs was a unification match as Mayer, 32, put her IBF and WBO super featherweight titles up against Baumgardner’s WBC and secondary IBO straps.
Coming into this duel, Baumgardner, 28, was riding a six-fight win streak since suffering her only professional defeat to Christina Linardatou. Of course, since that July 28, 2018 loss, the most significant win for The Bomb came against Terri Harper. This is because outside of stopping Harper in the fourth round, this is where Baumgardner secured her two belts. Since that career-altering victory, The Bomb has staged one successful title defense against Edith Soledad Matthysse.
The road to this dustup with Baumgardner was a little cleaner for Mayer as she was able to remain undefeated. The Californian native initially achieved champion status when she beat Ewa Brodnicka to win the vacant WBO 130-pound title. Following that October 31, 2020 win, Mayer would then topple Maiva Hamadouche to claim the IBF super featherweight strap on November 5, 2021.
THE HARD ROAD
The bout opened with Baumgardner largely controlling the pace and action with her jab to the face and belly. During the second round, while functioning as a counterpuncher, The Bomb continued her success but began connecting with more meaningful combinations. Mayer still had yet to find her groove. That would change during the third round when Mayer would crack Baumgardner in the mouth with several heavy shots. The Bomb ate them well.
The match remained very nip and tuck over the next couple rounds even though the edge more than likely was going to The Bomb. Then, to start the fifth, Mayer nailed Baumgardner with more straight rights down the pipe than the law should allow. As Mayer had better results, Baumgardner had a nasty habit of increasingly telegraphing her punches in blatant fashion. In the sixth, Mayer was saddled with a cut over her eye.
THERE CAN BE ONLY ONE
After a pair of seemingly good rounds for The Bomb, Mayer drew her line in the sand staged an effective and sharp ninth round. Yet, very few of any periods were run away rounds for either fighter. Sadly though, neither fighter really did much of anything in the final period. This will be a decision that certainly haunts Mayer. That’s because, when the scorecards were read, Baumgardner prevailed by way of SD to the tune of 97-93, 96-95 Baumgardner and 96-95 Mayer. This was a really solid fight that certainly would justify a rematch. Yet, when asked during the post-fight interview, The Bomb explicitly stated that Mayer would not be granted a rematch. Instead, Baumgardner expressed her desire to face WBA super featherweight champion Hyun-Mi Choi.
By: Bakari Simpson
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