Terri Harper dethroned Rhiannon Dixon and won the historic title in British boxing – The Ring

Terri Harper ended the home run skid in the best way possible.

The historic third division title was won by the Denaby Main boxer after a ten-round unanimous decision victory over Rhiannon Dixon. Harper’s scores during the DAZN main event on Saturday at the Park Community Arena in Sheffield, England were 97-93, 97-93 and 96-94.

“For me, it was the best performance of my career,” Harper said after the victory.

Harper became the first British woman to win titles in three weight classes. She previously held the 130- and 154-pound titles.

The return to lightweight comes after Harper (15-2-2, 6 knockouts) fell just short of a welterweight title fight in her last outing. A fourth-round stoppage of then-WBO 147-pound champion Sandy Ryan (7-2-1, 3 KO) in March left Harper on a two-fight winless streak. Last October, she drew with Cecilia Braekhus to defend her WBA 154-pound title.

Both fights took place in Sheffield. Her previous home appearance was a fourth-round knockout of Alycia Baumgardner that ended her WBC 130-pound title reign.

Saturday’s clash with Dixon (9-1, 1 KO) had Harper much more comfortable at lightweight than he was at 147 and 154. It wasn’t easy to get the action going at first, but that only made Harper’s choice of right hands stand out. become much more.

Dixon struggled to choke Harper as the two were close to each other. The undefeated lightweight champion was unable to get rid of punches in these moments and quickly found herself in a losing position.

A dramatic change in momentum occurred early in the sixth. Harper connected with a right hand, but connected just as Dixon connected with a right hook. The shot caused Harper’s back leg to buckle and Dixon’s corner burst with enthusiasm in the hope of converting the goal. But Dixon couldn’t catch lightning in a bottle.

Harper opened the seventh with a straight right hand up the middle. This set the tone for the balance of the fight, as Dixon’s success was moderate. She managed to close the gap on one account, but her reign ended within six months.

Dixon won the vacant WBO lightweight title with an April 13 victory over Karen Elizabeth Carabajal in Manchester. She became the first trained title holder under former WBA lightweight champion Anthony Crolla, a Manchester icon in his heyday.

Despite this, Dixon described the performance as a disappointment and vowed to do better compared to Harper. She never even came close to keeping that promise.

Meanwhile, Harper resurrected her career after being written off at the age of 27.

The victory was her first since she overtook Ivana Habazin to win the WBA 154-pound title on May 27 in Manchester. She had to wait weeks to land this fight, which was postponed three times due to shifts in the programs she was previously attached to. This card alone resulted in the defeat of two previously scheduled headliners.

The leadership decision was made to put the fight first and not be at the mercy of others.

“I’m glad we continued this show,” said promoter Eddie Hearn. “These girls have been training for so long. We made the decision to keep the event and it became history. Now he is on the brink of serious struggles. There are some big names there [and around] this decision.”

Harper will join Matchroom-promoted Katie Taylor (23-1, 6 KO) and Beatriz Ferreira (5-0, 2 KO) in the lightweight title fight.

Taylor Taylor is not expected to return to the 135-pound division. She holds THE RING’s undisputed 140 championship, which she defends against RING featherweight champion Amanda Serrano (47-2-1, 31 KO) in a rematch on November 15 in Arlington, Texas. However, the WBC and WB allowed her to hold the belts at both weights, even though it violated their rules.

Taylor vacated the WBO and IBF 135-pound titles following her 140-pound victory over Chantelle Cameron last November.

Ferreira earned the IBF chip following her victory over Yanina del Carmen Lescano in Liverpool in April, scoring 27 points. The fight was her last before her second Olympic tour, during which she won bronze in Paris and a silver medal in Tokyo.

Caroline Dubois (10-0, 5 KO) is the WBC interim champion. Jessica Camara (14-4, 3 KO) is the main candidate to fight for the WBA lightweight belt as soon as it becomes available.

Now armed with a belt with a weight more suited to her figure, Harper is ready for anyone.

“It’s so good to be back in this situation,” Harper exclaimed.

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