Big Fight Preview: Shannon Ryan vs. Chloe Watson

Big Fight Preview: Shannon Ryan vs. Chloe Watson

There is much to like about Friday night’s super-flyweight showdown between Shannon Ryan and Chloe Watson at the iconic York Hall. A domestic dust-up that has real and significant world title implications. The winner will move to within touching distance of that elusive opportunity on the world stage. A high-stakes affair that could deliver in every way imaginable.

Ryan and Watson have near identical records. Both have a solitary defeat on their resume. Ryan lost to Emma Dolan in 2024, and Watson surrendered her European flyweight title to Jasmina Zapotoczna in March. The importance of a victory is obvious, a second career reversal for either fighter isn’t the end of the road, but the loser on Friday night will know it could be a long way back if they have legitimate ambitions to be challenging for world titles in the foreseeable future.

The 28-year-old Watford-born Ryan is the betting favourite in this intriguing super-flyweight contest that has the vacant IBF Inter-continental bauble on the line. However, the 25-year-old Birkenhead-fighter looks good value to anyone who believes Watson will begin her campaign at a higher weight with a victory.

Both Ryan (9-1) and Watson (8-1) made changes to their inner circle after losing their unbeaten records to Dolan and Zapotoczna, respectively. Ryan has fought two low-key fights since the defeat to Dolan, while Watson walks straight back into a big fight after her fight in March at the Royal Albert Hall. The fight carries elements of risk alongside the obvious rewards. Both fighters are rolling the dice somewhat, and they deserve immense credit for taking the gamble when they could have gone in a far safer direction.

Ryan and Watson both look more than capable of challenging for world titles, and they could have easily avoided each other to get there. The current landscape of women’s boxing has probably forced their hand a little, but a good fight is a good fight regardless of how and why it gets over the line. This is most certainly that. If the female side of the sport in the UK is to pull itself out of its current predicament, it needs fights like this. It’s a perfect and well-timed piece of matchmaking.

The pre-fight betting odds are close and reflect accurately that picking a winner is extremely difficult. Ryan probably deserves her status as the favourite, but Watson is a class act and could quite easily upset the odds on Friday night. Both fighters lost their unbeaten records by way of a split-decision, and it wouldn’t be a surprise if that’s the way it ends again.

Photo Credit: Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing