The first all-female PPV card has come and gone and Claressa Shields has made history by becoming the first fighter to be undisputed at both 154 and 160 lbs. The next step for her is to move down to face the winner of Jessica McCaskill and Cecilia Brækhus.
The undercard saw a WBC Silver Heavyweight Champion crowned but the undercard lacked excitement. The Esparza fight was the highlight of the undercard.
A few observations before we get to the results below, there was way too much talking in-between the fights. I understand the need to push the fighters since they have the spotlight on them but it dragged on. Another observation was it seemed kind of ironic that this was a fight to promote women but they still used ring card girls (not that I’m complaining).
Fight results and rundown below.
Claressa Shields vs Marie-Eve Dicaire
In the first round, Dicaire comes out extending the jab. She gets close to Shields who in turn lands a beautiful counter right. Both fighters mixed it up in spurts for the first two rounds, but Shields got the best of her opponent.
Shields rocked Dicaire in the third and rushed in for the kill. The two tangled, but Shields maintained the right distance to land bombs.
The next few rounds pretty much followed the exact same pattern. Shields and Dicaire got into some heated exchanges. Shields got the best of it and then Dicaire clinched.
Each round repeated the previous and although Dicaire was game she did not do enough to win the fight, much less any rounds.
The fight goes to the scorecards and Shields grabs a unanimous decision with all three cards reading 100-90.
Danielle Perkins vs Monika Harrison
The two fighters come out swinging, but Perkins is the more accurate fighter and controls the distance. Harrison is able to land a shot here and there but it’s Perkins landing the best shits in the first two rounds.
Perkins is mostly headhunting I’m the third round. The body of Harrison is open but Perkins is largely ignoring it. If she were to attack the body the head would open up for some power shots.
The fifth round repeats the previous rounds but Harrison is pretty much out on her feet. By the end of the round, Harrison is down from a slip and takes her time getting up. Seems like the end is near at this point.
In the last round, and up to this point, it is a one-sided beat down. The contest is not even close. Harrison lands two nice right hands in the eighth round but it’s not enough. Perkins seemed to be having more fun in the round but didn’t seem too serious.
By the end of the fight, all three judges had the bout 80-72 for Perkins who now holds the WBC Silver Heavyweight Title.
Jamie Mitchell vs Noemi Bosquez
Mitchell’s speed allowed her to control the first two rounds. Bosquez tried to sit down on her punches but not much happened as she would get tagged with two or three punches before she would throw one.
Bosquez is really taking some punishment in the third round and she takes a sharp jab to the eye as the bell rings to end the round. Round four was pretty much the same as the previous three rounds. Mitchell lands a beautiful left hook towards the end of the round.
Bosquez gets rocked hard in the fifth round and goes down after stumbling but the referee ruled it as a slip. At this point, you can sense the end is near. Not more than twenty seconds later the referee calls a stop to the bout at 1:49 of the fifth round and Mitchell stays undefeated.
Marlen Esparza vs Shelly Barnett
The first round of the opening bout started off fast but there was plenty of clinching. Esparza landed the cleaner shots with her best lunch being an overhand right. The third round started out action-packed with the two ladies fighting inside a phone booth. The two began to find some separation but in the last thirty seconds, Esparza landed the better shots with overhand rights and hooks.
Esparza teed off in Barnett in the first 30 seconds of round four and it seemed like she sensed blood in the water as she tried to close the show. Barnett slowed down quite considerably and by now she’s taken a beating.
The fifth round was a seek and destroy for Esparza as she threw everything including the kitchen sink at Barnett. Barnett’s face is badly beaten at this point. Barnett landed a few shots in the sixth round but it was all Esparza as she outworked and out-landed her opponent.
When the fight goes to the scorecards and Esparza wins a unanimous decision with the cards reading 60-54 and 60-53 twice.
