Sandy Ryan is to defend her WBO welterweight title against Mikaela Mayer at New York’s Madison Square Garden Theater on September 27.
Mayer, 34, lost via split decision when in January she challenged Natasha Jonas for the IBF title, but having previously been champion at super featherweight she will again fight to win a title at a second weight.
Her former trainer Kay Koroma will be in Ryan’s corner. The 30-year-old Ryan, from England, is making the second defence of her title, having drawn with Jessica McCaskill in September 2023.
Puerto Rican junior middleweight Xander Zayas, against Damian Sosa of Mexico, and the Brooklyn-born featherweight Bruce Carrington, against Uganda’s Sulaiman Segawa, fight on the undercard.
“After months of negotiations in every direction, I am thrilled that my team has pulled through for me and gotten me this fight,” Mayer said. “As several dates fell through in the UK, the last thing I expected was for my manager to call with an offer that ticked every box.
“My team not only secured me another title fight against the opponent I asked for, but I’m coming back to the US with my Top Rank and ESPN family. I loved fighting in the UK over the past two years, but I have genuinely missed fighting in America. I’m ready to take Sandy Ryan’s WBO belt.”
Ryan said: “I’m excited to be returning to America and particularly fighting at MSG. It’s the Mecca of boxing and a venue that every champion dreams of competing in. I feel privileged to have been given this opportunity, and I want to thank Matchroom and Top Rank for coming together to make the fight.
“It’s the perfect moment in my career, and I’m looking forward to successfully defending my world title. I can promise that on a level playing field, nobody is taking this belt from me.
“Mayer has had an awful lot to say about me and this fight, and I’m sure she will continue to do so, but I’m an athlete and a professional. I will let my boxing do my talking, and I will shine in that ring on September 27. Bring it on.”
Bob Arum’s Top Rank will promote the date of September 27, and Arum said: “Mikaela Mayer always wants to fight the best, and Sandy Ryan is an elite welterweight. These are two of the best pound-for-pound fighters in the world, and the winner will stake her claim as the preeminent 147-pounder.
“Bruce Carrington and Xander Zayas are future superstars, and I look forward to seeing how they fare against the toughest opponents of their respective careers.”
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