Nina Hughes Crowned The New WBA Bantamweight Champion Of The World
It’s been less than a year since Nina Hughes made her professional debut, but already, she is a world champion.
Hughes went to Dubai with hope, but many didn’t share those hopes against the previously unbeaten champion. Jamie Mitchell was largely expected to retain her WBA bantamweight title for the second time and go onto unification fights in 2023, but it is now the Essex fighter who will be looking forward to those big fights.
On a night when scorecards were on the erratic side elsewhere in the boxing world. Trust me, I am being kind, Hughes got a thoroughly deserved unanimous decision over the American by scores of 97-93, 96-94, and a repeat 96-94. And at 40 and in only her 5th pro fight, Hughes put the finishing touches to a quite incredible year.
Mitchell beat Shannon Courtenay to win the world title last year and impressively stopped Carly Skelly earlier this year, but she found her latest British opponent a little too much for her. Hughes started the better, and while Mitchell found more success in the closing rounds, it wasn’t quite enough to close the gap on the judges’ scorecards.
The new champion has a very big year ahead of her next year. Ebanie Bridges the IBF champion and Dina Thorslund the WBO title holder will all be in her sights in 2023, but for now, Hughes can look back on a 12 months that has completely changed her life. And you sense, she isn’t finished yet.
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