Terri Harper beats Rhiannon Dixon by unanimous decision to become three-weight world champion
Doncaster's Terri Harper won 10-round clash with scores of 96-94, 97-93, 97-93 in Sheffield; Warrington's Rhiannon Dixon was defending world title for first time following win vs Karen Elizabeth Carabajal in April; Harper becomes first British woman to win titles in three weight divisions
Sunday 29 September 2024 08:18, UK
Terri Harper beat Rhiannon Dixon by unanimous decision to become a three-weight world champion.
The 27-year-old from Doncaster, who had previously held world titles at super-welterweight and super-featherweight, claimed the WBO world lightweight belt with scores of 96-94, 97-93, 97-93.
"That's the best one of my career. I've become a new fighter mentally and physically," Harper - the light-middleweight and former super-featherweight champion - said.
"There was one point in that fight where I was clocked and I really had to dig deep, but I managed to recover quite quick.
"It's so good to be back in this situation."
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Warrington's Dixon was defending the world title for the first time following her win over Karen Elizabeth Carabajal in April.
The victory sees Harper became the first British woman to win titles in three weight divisions.
A return to lightweight came after Harper (15-2-2, 6 KO) came up well short in a bid to win a welterweight title in her last outing.
A fourth-round stoppage to then-WBO 147-pound titlist Sandy Ryan in March left Harper with a two-fight winless streak, as she was also held to a draw against Cecilia Braekhus in her WBA 154-pound title defence last October.
Both fights took place in Sheffield - as Saturday's victorious bout did. Her previous appearance at home was a fourth-round knockout to Alycia Baumgardner to end her 130-pound title reign.
Saturday's clash vs Dixon (9-1, 1 KO) saw Harper far more comfortable at lightweight than at 147 and 154, as she ultimately proved victorious.
'Truth will be set free' says Ryan as Mayer denies paint-throwing claims
Harper's former opponent, Sandy Ryan, was hit with a can of red paint before losing her WBO welterweight world title to Mikaela Mayer in New York as she pointed the finger at her rival over the incident.
Tensions had been high prior to the fight, with Mayer accusing Ryan of poaching her long-standing coaching team, which Ryan denied. Ryan had said she did not respect her opponent, accusing her of talking "trash".
But the spiteful rivalry escalated when Ryan was splashed with red paint ahead of the fight, before claiming she had been "set up".
Ryan took the ring at Madison Square Garden as scheduled, despite being advised by her trainer to pull out of the bout, but lost on a majority decision, leaving Mayer as the world champion.
