With Terri Harper defending her WBC and IBO super featherweight titles in Sheffield on November 13, Mikaela Meyer has the chance to take centre stage a week earlier this Friday night on Top Rank’s bill at Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas, as she defends her WBO title against IBF queen, Maiva Hamadouche, in a unification bout.
Mayer vs Hamadouche will be televised on ESPN+ in the USA and on Sky Sports in the UK.
Mayer (15-0, 5 KOs) has made no secret of her eagerness to face Harper, with a future meeting between the pair an exciting prospect.
There is also the Korean, Hyun Mi Choi, the WBA ruler, and there are a lot of decent match-ups to be made in the division.
A 2016 Olympian, with a host of amateur accolades to her name, the 31-year-old turned over in August 2017, and moved through the levels before winning the vacant WBO title in October last year, when her opponent, Ewa Brodnicka lost her title on the scales and was hammered on the scorecards.
Her first defence was a more competitive affair in June, when she outscored Erica Anabella Farias.
Next up comes France’s Hamadouche (22-1, 18 KOs) who has held her title since 2016.
The 31-year old’s only defeat came way back in November 2015, losing to the then WBC lightweight champion, Delfine Persoon and she won the vacant IBF strap in 2016, outpointing Jennifer Salinas.
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Six defences have followed, all against limited opposition, with her last an eighth round stoppage win against the 6-3-1 Nina Pavlovic in Milan in December 2020.
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Prediction: Mayer is a skilled operator, and will look to control the action in this one. Hamadouche is durable, and should be competitive, but the likely outcome is that Mayer gets her hand raised, and unifies in a clear points win.
Undercard
Four eight rounders make up the undercard. At super featherweight, Puerto Rico’s Luis Melendez (16-1, 13 KOs) fights outside of Colombia for the first time in 2021, and should be able to halt Cleveland native Thomas Mattice (17-2-1, 13 KOs) inside schedule.
The unification fight this Friday on ESPN+ between Mikaela Mayer and Maiva Hamadouche is as good as it gets in women’s boxing. I urge all of the organizations and commissions to permit women to fight three-minute rounds.
— Bob Arum (@BobArum) November 2, 2021
Also at the same weight, Andres Cortes (15-0, 8 KOs) can maintain his unbeaten record with a win on the cards against Mark Bernaldez (23-4, 17 KOs).
Joseph Adorno (14-0-2, 12 KOs) is coming off two straight draws, and he may need all eight rounds to see off Argentine, Elias Damian Araujo (21-3, 8 KOs) in their lightweight bout.
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Promising middleweight, Tyler Howard (19-0, 11 KOs) can score a early win against Ian Green (14-2, 11 KOs).
Abdullah Mason makes his debut, and the lightweight can record a points win over Jaylan Phillips (1-0, 1 KO) over four, while Jeremy Adorno (5-0, 1 KO) takes on a six round assignment at super bantamweight, and light heavyweight Dante Benjamin makes his professional bow.
