Chantelle Cameron retains WBC Super Lightweight title in fight against Melissa Hernandez
In her latest in-ring effort, WBC World Super Lightweight champion Chantelle “Il Capo” Cameron (14-0, 8 KO’s) made the first successful defense of her title. She accomplished this via sixth-round stoppage over Melissa “The Hurricane Shark” Hernandez (23-8-3, 7 KO’s). Cameron initially won the vacant belt by smacking Adriana dos Santos Araujo around for ten rounds on October 4, 2020.
For those familiar with Cameron, it is well known that she had been gunning for a fight with undisputed lightweight champion Katie Taylor. The two have a rivalry that extends back to the amateurs. The two would clash a number of times before going pro, although Taylor came out on top in each occasion. Naturally, Cameron was itching for payback. Despite winning a title eliminator and becoming Taylor’s mandatory, the bout remained frustratingly elusive. Tired of chasing, and wanting to become a world champion, Il Capo moved up and won the WBC title.
It is unknown where Hernandez will go from here. Not only was this her eighth professional loss, she has been wildly inactive. Prior to her fight with Cameron, The Shark had not fought in two years when she locked horns with Selina Barrios. Before the Barrios dustup, Hernandez was idle for three straight years following a unanimous decision loss to Layla McCarter. With this latest defeat, options for the Puerto Rican slugger appear rather slim.
SOUR CONCLUSION
Right from the start, Cameron hammered Hernandez with just about every punch in the book. Within the first minute of the opening round, Hernandez was retreating, getting beat up and had a bloody nose. There was very little that changed about the fight over the course of the next few rounds for The Hurricane Shark. During the third round, Hernandez was battered to the ropes and plastered with a variety of hard shots. She only got off the ropes when Cameron willingly backed up and took the fight back to the center of the ring.
In a repeat of the third, The Hurricane Shark found herself trapped on the ropes once again in the fourth. Only this time, a flurry of punches overwhelmed her and sent her to the canvas. Hernandez easily beat the count and continued without any major difficulty. Unfortunately, the fight was bizarrely and abruptly stopped by referee Celestino Ruiz in the sixth. There was no doubt that Cameron was firmly in control and ahead on the cards, but this was a particularly poor stoppage. Hernandez was not hurt when Ruiz stopped it and looked appropriately mystified when he jumped in. The crowd on hand forcefully booed the terrible conclusion.
By: Bakari Simpson
