A British Title Fight Between Maiseyrose Courtney & Chloe Watson Could Be What The Flyweight Division Needs

A British Title Fight Between Maiseyrose Courtney & Chloe Watson Could Be What The Flyweight Division Needs

Women’s boxing is at somewhat of a crossroads. 2024 was a difficult year as the attention went elsewhere, and a large portion of the momentum, which the female side of the sport has gained over the last few years, was lost. In truth, not much has changed in 2025. The Boxxer all-female card at the Royal Albert Hall in March was a rare highlight, as were Mikaela Mayer and Sandy Ryan doing their thing a few weeks later in another unforgettable war. The one shining light is Jake Paul and his Most Valuable Promotions. Significant time and money are being invested courtesy of MVP. It’s not too much of a stretch to suggest that Jake Paul could be the saviour of women’s boxing. He might need to be.

Outside of that thriving MVP bubble, many a fighter are still struggling for confirmed fight dates. Interest has undoubtedly been lost, and fighters are having to feed off scraps. But despite the current stagnation and waning interest, hope isn’t completely lost. The flyweight ranks could be where that hope comes from.

It is a division where a British title could and should be created, and it wouldn’t be a token offering where it is won and never defended. On that score, we’ve been there. The domestic flyweight scene offers a multitude of options. All it needs is for someone to show some semblance of interest.

The ideal fight for an inaugural British flyweight title would be Maiseyrose Courtney against Chloe Watson. Both have lost their unbeaten records to the talented Jasmina Zapotoczna in recent times. A fight between Courtney and Watson would be the perfect piece of matchmaking, and at the perfect time. They have been mooted to fight each other previously for the European title that Watson held until Zapotoczna took it from her on that Boxxer all-female card at the Royal Albert Hall in March. Only recently, the pair have exchanged words on social media. With Courtney and Watson both in need of another high-profile fight to reignite their careers, it seems like a good time to revisit that fight. Both have expressed an interest in fighting each other. A Lonsdale belt would greatly increase the significance of that potential fight. There are potential challengers in Laura Pain and Megan Redstall. A British flyweight title, you suspect, has enough depth to warrant its inception.

The winner of any meeting between Courtney and Watson could be in the frame to fight Zapotoczna in a rematch with that European flyweight title on the line. Zapotoczna is coming off those two really good victories against Courtney and Watson, but she is also somewhat in limbo with no apparent fights on the horizon.

The Commonwealth flyweight champion Nicola Hopewell does have a fight lined up next month when she challenges Marie Connan for her IBO title in Sheffield. Many will question the validity of the Connan-Hopewell fight being billed as a ‘world’ title fight, especially when we live in a four-belt era, and Gabriela Fundora is the undisputed world flyweight champion, but that IBO title could lead the winner, especially Hopewell, onto far bigger things. Maiseyrose Courtney or Chloe Watson would undoubtedly show an interest in a domestic showdown with Hopewell should she emerge victorious in July. Zapotoczna has previously expressed a desire to fight Hopewell. That IBO bauble could give the Worksop fighter enough currency to get her a fight on a bigger platform.

But how it all plays out, there are more than enough options for all the fighters mentioned above to have some big nights ahead of them. Some will criticise the lack of depth in women’s boxing, but the flyweight division has plenty of it. One of the aforementioned fighters could even land a date with the seemingly untouchable Gabriela Fundora. Either way, there is plenty of life in the flyweight ranks. It should be explored.