Boxing
Boxing results: Mikaela Mayer storms Montreal, beats Mary Spencer and walks away with three belts
Published
7 months agoon
Mikaela Mayer defeated Mary Spencer by marching straight into her yard, pushing the door off its hinges and helping herself to every bar on display.
The Montreal fans cheered for their hometown favorite, but a pin could be heard dropping in the third round. Mayer wasn’t there to take selfies or sightseeing. She came in to do her shift, and by the final bell, Spencer looked like she’d gone down a storm.
Ten rounds of difficult, vicious boxing – jab, hook, pressure, repeat – and it wasn’t even close. The cards said it all: 100-90, 98-92, 98-92. Science.
Mayer left Canada with WBA, WBC and WBO super welterweight titles strapped on the shoulders, adding them to the WBO welterweight crown.
Four lanes. Two divisions. One warrior who doesn’t want to be anyone’s stepping stone.
The smaller woman fought like the bigger boss
On paper, Spencer was supposed to be the stronger one – a local hero, with a bigger frame, a puncher. But the paper lies.
As soon as the bell rang, Mayer began abusing her. He knocked her down with a difficult jab, slipped inside, and dug his right hands into her body like she was collecting rent.
Spencer tried to make a circle, but Mayer cut off the ring like a pro and didn’t give her a moment to breathe. By the middle, Spencer’s game plan seemed as solid as soggy cardboard.
“I’m usually the taller player,” Mayer said later, still smiling despite a bit of blood and sweat. “But since I’m usually a taller fighter, I also know how to beat me. I knew I had to get under Mary Spencer and get over the top with gigantic hooks. That’s what we trained for.”
And fair play – she succeeded. In the last few rounds, the traffic was one-way. Mayer went down with her like she owned the place, tilting her head back and delivering neat hooks at will. Spencer looked like she wanted to be anywhere else.
Mayer’s recovery was brutal and she was finally back on top
You could say it meant a lot. The last few years have not been kind to Mayer. Bad breaks, hefty losses, dodgy matchmaking – she had to get back to the top. But now she’s where she belongs, with gold on her shoulders and a point to prove.
“I think the most significant thing is that I have a choice,” she said. “You always need options. After two years, my career took a left turn. I had to find my way back to this position. Having options is a blessing.”
And she has them. Mayer can return to 147 pounds, race undisputed, or stay put and defend at 154. Either way, she holds the cards now.
“I could go back to 147, become undisputed there, or maybe come back and defend at 154,” she added. “We will review it with the team.”
You can tell she means it. No PR gibberish. Just a warrior who speaks like someone who has fallen, dusted herself off, and found who she is again.
View from the ring side
From behind the ring it was clear who was in charge. Mayer took his time. He didn’t get caught up in anything stupid. Simply packaged – mean, neat, patient.
Spencer had her moments earlier, but once Mayer got into her groove, she simply turned the screw. Each round, a little more pressure, a few neat shots, until the noise in the arena completely died down.
It wasn’t glamorous. It was proper, difficult, professional work – the kind where you don’t make viral videos, but win gigantic fights. Mayer’s calmness was evident from the first bell. No nerves. Don’t panic. Just control.
At the end, Spencer was still standing, but that was all she could say. Mayer didn’t celebrate in any particular way, he didn’t show off. She just smiled – that serene ‘I told you so’ smile – the kind warriors wear when everyone has shut up.
Three novel stripes, another layer to her legacy.
Mayer is back and still has a lot of work to do.
Undercard results:
- Wilkens Mathieu def. Shakeel Phinn – UD (99-90, 98-91 x2) – wins NABF and WBC super middleweight titles in continental America
- Arthur Biyarslanov def. Sergey Lipinets – UD (97-92, 99-90, 96-93) – defended the NABF junior welterweight title
- Mehmet Unal def. Ralfs Vilcans – TKO1 (2:44) – defended the WBC Continental Americas delicate heavyweight title
- Christopher Guerrero def. Williams Andres Herrera – UD (97-93, 99-91, 98-92) – defended the WBC welterweight title in continental America
Amy Kaplan has been a boxing fan since she was 10, which means she’s spent most of her life explaining to people that, yes, she actually prefers fight nights to dinner. Now he writes for Boxing News 24 and covers everything from world title fights to prospects eyeing a payday. He combines keen analysis with sarcasm, calling out boxing politics and cutting through the noise of press releases to bring fans the stories that really matter.
Last updated: 31/10/2025
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Boxing
Canelo Alvarez makes his feelings clear after Verhoeven’s controversial 11th round stoppage against Usyk
Published
1 minute agoon
May 24, 2026
Canelo Alvarez commented on the controversial break between Oleksandr Usyk and Rico Verhoeven.
The boxing world was buzzing with their reaction Usyk successfully defended his heavyweight crown against Verhoeven at the Pyramids of Giza in Egypt.
However, for a long time it seemed that this would not be an effective defense, and the final came in the 11th round when referee Mark Lyson stopped the fight, which many viewers prematurely believed.
Verhoeven performed well above expectations, causing Usyk numerous problems throughout the fight, but although he recovered from the knockdown, the kickboxing star was stopped on his feet and denied the chance to advance to the 12th round.
Tony Bellew believes Verhoeven should be given a chance to continue his career, but Mexican superstar Canelo does not share the same view.
I talk to professional boxing fansCanelo revealed that he agreed with the judge’s decision.
“It was a good fight, I don’t think so [that it was was an early stoppage]I think they saved a brutal knockout.”
Usyk is expected to take some time before deciding on his next move, with some fans calling for an immediate rematch with Verhoeven while others want him to face mandatory WBC title challenger Agit Kabayel now.
As for Canelo, he will return to action in September and will look to reclaim his world titles when he fights WBC super middleweight champion Christian Mbilli in Riyad, Saudi Arabia.
Boxing
Prince Naseem Hamed’s biopic “Giant” hits the United States on May 22
Published
2 hours agoon
May 23, 2026
a biopic chronicling the career of former featherweight champion Prince Naseem Hamed will be released in select U.S. theaters and on VOD on May 22. The film stars Amir El-Masry as Hamed and Pierce Brosnan as his longtime trainer Brendan Ingle, with Sylvester Stallone among the executive producers.
Directed and written by Rowan Athale, it premiered at the BFI London Film Festival in October 2025 and was released in the UK and Ireland on January 9, 2026, before arriving in the Middle East via the Red Sea Film Festival. Vertical holds U.S. distribution rights, and the film was financed by AGC Studios and BondIt Media Capital.
What the movie covers
The plot follows Hamed’s rise from Sheffield, England, to a world title under Ingle, an Irish-born steelworker who ran a boxing gym in a church hall. According to the official description, the film also addresses the racism and Islamophobia that Hamed faced in the UK in the 1980s and 1990s, and also focuses on his relationship with Ingle, who died in 2018.
Collider published an exclusive clip from the film on May 21 featuring Hamed’s 1994 fight against Vincenzo Belcastro. In this fight, Hamed won the European bantamweight title in 12 rounds, which was only his 12th professional contest, which was the beginning of his later career.
The warrior behind the film
Hamed, a southpaw of Yemeni heritage, finished his professional career with a 36-1 record and 31 knockouts while holding featherweight titles in multiple sanctioning bodies throughout the 1990s. Now 51, he was known for his unconventional style, pre-fight showmanship and ring walks that often ended with a fall over the top rope. In 2015, he was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
Following Ingle’s death, Hamed directly attributed his success to his coach Ring that without him he wouldn’t have achieved what he did in sports.
The supporting cast included Toby Stephens as promoter Frank Warren and Katherine Dow Blyton as Alma Ingle. The film lasts 110 minutes.
Rico Verhoeven insists he has proven he belongs in boxing despite an 11th-round loss to Oleksandr Usyk on Saturday night in Egypt.
The former kickboxing champion pushed Usyk much harder than many expected before the referee stepped in tardy in the fight. At the time of the stoppage, two judges had the fight even at 95-95, with the third having Verhoeven ahead 96-94.
“Yeah, it sucks. I felt like I was so close to shocking the world,” Rico Verhoeven told DAZN Boxing after the fight.
“I want to stay here. I think I showed the world that I can definitely box. Even as a kickboxer they told me, ‘Who is this guy? He can’t do anything. It’ll be four or five rounds,’ but I think after four or five rounds we were pretty even in terms of results.”
“So I think it was a crazy, crazy performance. I felt like I was so close to winning, but it is what it is.”
Verhoeven entered the fight as the main underdog against the undefeated unified heavyweight champion, but his physical pressure, size and willingness to trade caused Usyk to struggle during several early and middle rounds.
The performance immediately changed the discussion about Verhoeven’s future in boxing.
Rather than treat the fight as a one-off, the Dutch heavyweight later made it clear that he planned to continue boxing despite the defeat. His comments also reflected the fierceness of the fight before Usyk finally took control in the championship rounds and forced a stoppage.
For much of the fight, Verhoeven looked much more comfortable than many expected against one of boxing’s greatest champions.
A painful loss for Rico 😢#UsykRico pic.twitter.com/oNuZfUTB96
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) May 23, 2026
Tomek Galm is a boxing journalist covering the global fight landscape since 2014, specializing in heavyweight analysis, industry trends and fighter psychology.
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Last updated: 23/05/2026 at 20:20
Canelo Alvarez makes his feelings clear after Verhoeven’s controversial 11th round stoppage against Usyk
Prince Naseem Hamed’s biopic “Giant” hits the United States on May 22
Oleksandr Usyk vs Rico Verhoeven – results and report after the fight
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