Terri Harper Seeking Experience and Growth at Lightweight in 2022
Ex-WBC women’s junior lightweight champion Terri “Belter” Harper (12-1-1, 6 KOs) got back to her winning ways as on May 12. She scored a comfortable unanimous decision win over Yamila Belen Abellaneda at the Nottingham Arena in Nottingham Arena. Harper had her way throughout. Her only signs of trouble were a cut suffered over her left eyebrow in round three. This fight took place at 135 pounds where Harper now plans to campaign. Afterward, the victor talked about her future.
LONG TERM STRATEGY
“I feel like this was a fresh start for me, and it was about coming out and getting the rounds. As you can see, I’m lacking the experience, and these are the fights that I need. That’s the first time dealing with a cut, and I had to learn how to deal with that in the ring tonight. This year, I need this to be a learning year.”
Her promoter, Eddie Hearn, doubled down by saying this year is about Harper staying active and acclimating herself to campaigning in a new division. In her last fight, she lost the WBC 130 pound title by stunning fourth-round TKO to the hard-hitting Alycia Baumgardner in November 2021. Baumgardner dominated the action from the opening bell before literally knocking Harper out on her feet.
The defeat was crushing. Leading up to that fight, Harper had plans of unifying the division. Suddenly, those aspirations went down the tubes.
REBUILD AND RESTORE
It’s a wise decision by the fighter and promoter. On April 30, undisputed lightweight champ Katie Taylor defends her belts against unified featherweight champ Amanda Serrano. The winner of that fight will likely have to make mandatory defenses for the rest of the year. Harper is not fighting for a lightweight title anytime soon.
More than anything, Harper’s post-fight comments suggest her confidence is still a bit shaky. Some fans believe the match with Abellaneda was too quick of a comeback. Her psyche has to be 100 percent if she wants to capture another world title, much less think about facing the winner of Taylor and Serrano. So, consider the win as step one for the rest of Harper’s career moving forward.
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By: Michael Wilson Jr.
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