Under The Radar: Chloe Watson

Under The Radar: Chloe Watson

There are many fighters who don’t get the recognition or the promotion that they deserve. In simple terms, fighters who deserve a bigger push. They could be an up-and-coming undefeated prospect. A fighter who has suffered a few early career defeats, but their resume hides a fighter who deserves a little more attention. It could even be a champion who, despite being a national or even a world champion, is still going under the radar somewhat. Chloe Watson is one such fighter.

Everything was going to plan for the then-unbeaten European champion. Watson headed into her March defence of her European flyweight title against Jasmina Zapotoczna, the betting favourite and full of confidence. The Birkenhead-fighter was seemingly on her way to challenging for world titles.

It was the long-awaited big stage for Watson after eight fights that had highlighted her credentials as a blue-chip prospect. An all-female card at the iconic Royal Albert Hall live on Sky Sports. This was the supposed coming-out party for Chloe Watson.

But Zapotoczna, for the second fight in a row, took away a fighter from the ranks of the undefeated. It was close, but Watson lost her unbeaten record and her European bauble by a wafer-thin split-decision.

Even in defeat, Watson showed what a good fighter she was. Zapotoczna is undoubtedly world-class. Watson proved she was also. Both Zapotoczna and Watson should have a place inside the top ten of any world flyweight rankings. Zapotoczna is probably a top-five flyweight, Watson isn’t that far off that kind of lofty ranking.

But in the eyes of some, a defeat can mean more than it should. One loss can relegate a fighter to the ranks of the forgotten. Chloe Watson is far too good a fighter to go under the radar because of that defeat to Zapotoczna in March. In truth, it was a fight that could have gone either way.

Watson has made made changes to her inner circle. A new training set-up, closer to home, and Watson has an upcoming fight that could get her back much of what was lost in March.

At the York Hall in October, Watson will move up to super-flyweight to fight the talented Shannon Ryan. It is an excellent piece of domestic matchmaking that could and should propel the winner onto bigger things. “I want to be in exciting fights,” Watson told me in March. She has been true to her word.

Ryan and Watson deserve immense credit for taking the fight. Both could have gone in a much safer direction. Maybe the current stagnation on the domestic scene for the female side of the sport has somewhat forced their hand, you could argue. But the rewards for the winner make it a gamble worth taking.

Emma Dolan, the British and Commonwealth super-flyweight champion, is the mandatory challenger for the IBF title. It applies to both fighters, of course, but Watson, with a win over Ryan in October, could put herself right back in contention for that world title shot. But world title or not, a domestic showdown between Emma Dolan and Chloe Watson is an enticing match-up.

At 25, Watson has time on her side, and she is only nine fights into her professional career. If the fight goes her way at the York Hall, Watson will have options at super-flyweight, but the doors will likely remain open at flyweight. A rematch with Jasmina Zapotoczna, you suspect, will always be of interest to Watson, and Maiseyrose Courtney told me last week that she is interested in fighting whoever wins out of Watson and Ryan. Watson and Courtney have had the odd verbal exchange in recent times, and it does seem like one of those fights that just has to happen at some point within the next twelve months, potentially with a British title on the line.

Many will question the credentials of Chloe Watson after her defeat to Zapotoczna. But they shouldn’t. Watson can come again, and if she beats Shannon Ryan, she will be right back in the mix.