Mikaela Mayer retained her WBO world welterweight title in Las Vegas, beating Britain’s Sandy Ryan by unanimous decision to settle their bitter rivalry.
The American overcame a cut above the eye and Ryan’s rally in the later rounds, winning with judges’ scores of 97-93, 97-93 and 98-92. After her victory, Mayer targeted a title unification bout with another Briton, Lauren Price.
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“Now it’s time for me to move on and go for undisputed,” said Mayer, setting up a potential winner-takes-all battle against Price. The Welsh fighter added the WBC and IBF titles to the WBA crown she already held with a points victory over Natasha Jonas at London’s Royal Albert Hall on 7 March.
Saturday’s WBO title bout was a rematch after Mayer took the crown from Ryan in New York in September 2024. That contest was ramped up when Derby’s Ryan was splashed with red paint outside her hotel in what she called a “hit and run” attack.
Before the rematch, Mayer denied any involvement in the incident. “Everyone who knows me, knows that would be out of character for me – it’s not my style,” the 34-year-old told BBC Sport. “You can’t just point a finger when there is no evidence leading back to me.”
After an even start in Vegas, Mayer landed a number of hard shots to take charge of the fight. Ryan fought her way back admirably, connecting with some powerful punches as Mayer was left bloodied by a clash of heads. By then, though, the champion was too far ahead on the judges’ cards to be denied.
“I thought it was close. I thought I was doing well into the start and then I got into a fight,” Mayer said after her second victory over Ryan. “Me and Sandy just set the new bar on what competitive fights should look like.”
