Today, Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) made a groundbreaking move in its quest to uplift women in boxing to equal footing with their male counterparts. They announced the first Women’s Unified Championship fight with the same regulations as a Men’s Championship.
Amanda “The Real Deal” Serrano (45-2-1, 30 KOs), a seven-division boxing world champion and the undisputed featherweight titleholder, is set to face the mandatory WBO featherweight contender, Danila “A Guerreira” Ramos (12-2, 1 KO) on Friday, October 27th at the Caribe Royale Resort in Orlando, Florida.
The WBO, WBA, and IBF world title fight between Serrano and Ramos, scheduled at 126 lbs, is poised to set a long-awaited landmark in women’s boxing. Unlike past protocols, this fight will be set over 12 three-minute rounds, mirroring men’s championship fights. Historically, the Association of Boxing Commissions and Combative Sports has had women’s championship fights set as 10 round bouts lasting 2 minutes each.
Leading the Most Valuable Prospects III will be Antonio Vargas (16-1, 9KOs) defending his WBA Continental Americas bantamweight title over 10 rounds.
The Serrano vs. Ramos fight is aiming to redefine women’s boxing standards. Not since Layla McCarter vs. Melissa Hernandez in 2007 has there been a women’s fight equivalent to the men’s maximum of 12 rounds lasting 3 minutes each. Now, as the world tunes in, Serrano and Ramos will inspire a fresh generation of female boxers, showcasing that they can achieve anything their male peers can. They’ll be fighting on equal grounds for a unified world championship title.
Serrano, the first Puerto Rican undisputed world champion, began her current WBO featherweight title journey by defeating Heather Hardy in a grueling 10-round fight in 2019 to clinch the WBO belt. Since then, she’s defended her WBO belt five times. Recently, Serrano offered Hardy a second chance but stood her ground, successfully defending her undisputed featherweight world champion title in a decisive 10-round unanimous decision. Earlier, Serrano had a fierce showdown with WBA featherweight champion Erika Cruz, which led to her becoming the undisputed featherweight champion. Following her victory over Sarah Mahfoud in Manchester, England, she acquired Mahfoud’s IBF title, adding to her WBO, WBC, and IBO featherweight titles. Her monumental fight against Katie Taylor at Madison Square Garden in 2022 was acclaimed as Sports Illustrated’s Fight of the Year and The Ring’s Event of the Year. It also received a nomination for Event of the Year by Sports Business Journal.
Beyond her strength in the ring, the Puerto Rican boxer is a stalwart advocate for equality in women’s boxing. Her main fight against Katie Taylor in 2022 shattered barriers in women’s boxing concerning equal pay. It was the pioneering combat sports event led by two women at Madison Square Garden. As she readies to fight Ramos, Serrano is geared to further establish that all boxers should compete at the highest standards, setting a new norm of 12 three-minute rounds, regardless of gender.
“Danila Ramos might be my WBO designated challenger, but inside the ring, she’ll truly understand my status as the undisputed featherweight champion,” Amanda Serrano expressed. “Yet, this fight transcends mere titles. Together, on Friday, October 27th, we aim to rewrite history, showcasing the prowess of women’s boxing and emphasizing our capability to match, if not exceed, any man in the ring. This is a symbol for all women, signaling the imperative to be recognized equal to men.”
Ramos, an experienced boxer from Buenos Aires, with roots in Sao Paulo, Brazil, was declared by the WBO on August 28th as the mandatory challenger for Serrano’s featherweight world title. Recently, Ramos clinched the WBO Interim World Featherweight Championship, besting Brenda Karen Carbajal in Buenos Aires. Ramos echoes Serrano’s sentiments about equalizing the rules for both men and women in elite boxing.
The founders of Most Valuable Promotions, Nakisa Bidarian and Jake Paul, extolled Amanda for her unparalleled contributions to boxing. Joe Markowski, CEO DAZN North America, also lauded Serrano as a genuine game-changer in the sport.
The MVP’s third edition of Most Valuable Prospects will spotlight emerging talents, including the young sensation from Puerto Rico, Krystal Rosado, Amanda Serrano’s first official recruit. Her debut at Most Valuable Prospects II saw her claim victory with a commendable TKO in the second round, proving her potential.
