The FightPost Top Ten British Female Fighters

The FightPost Top Ten British Female Fighters

March was an important month for women’s boxing. It was a grand and much-needed relaunch for the female side of the sport. Boxxer put on another all-female extravaganza at the start of the month. It was a four-week period that ended with Mikaela Mayer removing all doubt in another unforgettable fight with Sandy Ryan. Four weeks that had a plethora of fights that truly showcased what women’s boxing can offer. Fights that resulted in many changes on this ever-changing list.

It was a month that saw fighters like Lauren Price and Karriss Artingstall making real statements and the likes of Natasha Jonas and Nina Hughes both suffering setbacks that could have ended their careers. Jonas and Hughes will decide their fighting futures in the coming weeks, although I suspect if the right offer comes along, both will fight on. Sandy Ryan will need a little patience until the doors open up for her again. The second straight defeat to Mayer was, in many ways, a devastating setback for her. But at 30, the Derby fighter can rebound and come again.

While I still believe Chantelle Cameron deservedly sits at the top of this list, Lauren Price is now pushing her hard for that top position. Cameron is somewhat in limbo while the Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano situation plays out later this year. Cameron understandably wants Taylor again, but she is also contemplating a move up to welterweight. If any fighter deserves another major fight, it’s Chantelle Cameron.

After her surprisingly comfortable win over Jonas at the Royal Albert Hall and Mikaela Mayer dominating Sandy Ryan in Las Vegas, Price and Mayer are seemingly on a collision course for undisputed status at welterweight. If Price extends her unbeaten run against Mayer, it would be incredibly difficult to justify her not being upgraded to that number one position. Although, if Chantelle Cameron does indeed test the 147 waters, it does throw up the possibility of Price and Cameron sharing a ring together.

Ellie Scotney is currently exploring free agency, but the unified world super-bantamweight champion will hopefully get the marquee fights her talents so richly deserve. Scotney is so gifted as a fighter, but for me, she still needs that really big fight that takes her career to another level. That might have to be at featherweight.

Caroline Dubois defended her WBC world lightweight title against the super-tough Bo Mi Re Shin on that Boxxer all-female card. Fighting a lingering virus as well as the relentless South Korean, Dubois showed another side of her that we hadn’t seen previously in those desperately tough last two rounds. A serious gut-check that will serve her well going forward. Dubois will demand that her team get her unification fights at some point this year. For her, that time has surely arrived. At 24, Dubois seems ready for the acid tests that will determine just how good she really is.

Terri Harper could be part of the Dubois story. The WBO lightweight bauble holder will be in demand by her rival champions after Harper makes the first defence of her title against the unbeaten German Natalie Zimmermann next month. Harper should be in another big fight before the year ends. The only question is, against who? The three-weight world champion certainly has options. Don’t rule a world title at a fourth weight at some point in her career.

Karriss Artingstall ended her extended ring absence at the Royal Albert Hall. Artingstall impressively beat Raven Chapman, and a world title fight should follow. After the upset loss, Skye Nicolson suffered at the hands of Tiara Brown, Artingstall could very well be the best featherweight on the planet.

After losing her world title to Terri Harper last September, Rhiannon Dixon was scheduled to return in March until a broken bone in her foot that required surgery delayed her return to the ring. Dixon is hoping to return later this year and is targeting a world title at a second weight. The move to super-featherweight should give new life to a career that suffered its first setback at the Canon Medical Arena.

Emma Dolan makes her maiden entry on this list. Unbeaten, but perhaps more than a touch underappreciated. Dolan added another impressive victory to her ever-increasing resume on Friday night against the former European super-flyweight champion Lauren Parker. Dolan, the British and Commonwealth champion, impressed again against Parker. Dolan has previously removed Nicola Hopewell and Shannon Ryan from the ranks of the unbeaten, and the win over Parker pushes her closer to a shot at a world title. On the evidence of her last three fights, Dolan looks more than capable of not only fighting for a world title but also winning one.

The FightPost Top Ten British Female Fighters:

1: Chantelle Cameron
2: Lauren Price
3: Ellie Scotney
4: Caroline Dubois
5: Natasha Jonas
6: Sandy Ryan
7: Terri Harper
8: Karriss Artingstall
9: Rhiannon Dixon
10: Emma Dolan