Should Rhiannon Dixon vs. Terri Harper Be A Main Event?

Should Rhiannon Dixon vs. Terri Harper Be A Main Event?

On August 24th, Rhiannon Dixon will make the first defence of her WBO world lightweight title against the two-weight world champion Terri Harper.

Dixon and Harper will head to Manchester without the fanfare that their fight deserves. Jack Catterall and Regis Prograis will headline, and with the recent addition of the heavyweight prospect and massive ticket seller Johnny Fisher to the card, the vocal Essex crew will ride into town and Dixon and Harper will be pushed a little further away from the limelight. Just how much attention and promotion will be given to a world title fight between two British fighters?

Women’s boxing has been on the rise in recent years. Katie Taylor, turning professional in 2016, was a pivotal moment. The door was subsequently opened, and many more followed Taylor into the pro ranks. Lockdown served their side of the sport well. The decision to place so many female fights on the behind-closed-doors shows was perhaps made with budget restrictions firmly on the mind, but whatever the reason, virtually every fight delivered. Terri Harper was very much part of that mini-revolution.

Harper defended her world super-featherweight baubles against Natasha Jonas in August 2020 when boxing started its latest chapter. Jonas was written off prior, but she served up a little reminder that she still had plenty to offer her sport. But Harper more than played her part in a titanic back-and-forth war that changed plenty in the perception of women’s boxing. All the fight lacked was a crowd.

The progress continued over the subsequent years. Taylor and Amanda Serrano headlined in New York in 2022. It was a historic event that sold out Madison Square Garden. Claressa Shields and Savannah Marshall did the same a few months later at the O2 Arena in London on a history-making all-female card. If that felt like a moment in time, that’s because it truly was.

But there are signs that the progress and interest have slowed in recent times. Slots on the major cards are seemingly harder to come by, and when they do arrive, they are pushed down the card with minimal promotion. Certainly, in comparison to what is given elsewhere. The Saudi millions seem to have passed by the female code. The impending arrival of the Saudi-made ‘Super League’ is anything but good for women’s boxing. How much interest will the major promoters have if that ‘Super League’ eventually becomes a reality? I suspect that interest will dwindle further when their priorities are shifted to the supposed new world order. But hopefully, my concerns do not materialise. But even now, the signs are not encouraging when everything, maybe now more so than ever before, is about the dollar. Is there enough money to be made from women’s boxing?

But regardless of what progress has been made and the concerns going forward, there is plenty of hope for the future, if the required investment of time and money is made. There are fights that deserve headline status. Rhiannon Dixon and Terri Harper is one such fight.

Dixon and Harper will trade blows with a large portion of the expected 8-10,000 crowd, probably consuming large amounts of alcohol and paying little attention to what Dixon and Harper are doing. The travelling faithful will cheer the two fighters on but with apathy from all around them.

The WBO champion and her first challenger deserve better. Their side of the sport also. Both fighters have something to sell. In truth, it is an easy sell. Harper trying to become a three-weight world champion and just maybe trying to save her career after losing so heavily to Sandy Ryan last time out. It is a strange narrative when you consider what Harper has previously done in her career. The Denaby fighter is also the younger fighter by two years. At 27, Harper is hardly at the end of the road. Even in your prime, boxing can cruelly write you off. Another defeat for Harper will mean plenty of rebuilding and soul-searching, but it shouldn’t be the end.

Dixon has come so far from her humble White Collar background, which promised very little. A few fights on the unlicensed and unregulated scene have morphed into something quite extraordinary. If Dixon and Harper can’t headline, I’m not sure what fight can. It certainly shouldn’t be buried in the shadows. There is a reason why Natasha Jonas and Mikaela Mayer worked so wonderfully earlier this year. Sky Sports sold the show with a vengeance and people were invested in their story. The interest in the fight came with it. The number of people who watched it more than justified the investment.

As I have previously written, imagine Dixon and Harper fighting in the Doncaster Dome, or a similar-sized venue elsewhere, with a few thousand fully-invested fans roaring them on. Same fight. Different atmosphere. Totally different perception. Trust me, that matters. Give it the attention and the promotion it deserves. Their side of the sport will not thrive if it keeps getting pushed away from the public consciousness. How can something shine if it’s not given the light?