Chantelle Cameron defeated Mikaela Mayer by unanimous decision at MVPW-06 in Birmingham to become the unified WBA, WBC and WBO super-welterweight champion.
The British fighter clinched victory with scores of 97-93, 97-93 and 96-94 on the judges' scorecards following an unrelenting contest on Saturday night.
Cameron withstood significant damage to her right eye during the bout to secure the win, underscoring her position among the elite competitors in women's professional boxing.
Cameron, a former undisputed light-welterweight champion, is widely recognized as the only boxer to defeat Irish star Katie Taylor during her professional career. Women's professional boxing title matches are traditionally scheduled for ten two-minute rounds, unlike the twelve three-minute rounds standard in men's professional championship bouts.
Ultimatum Over Three-Minute Rounds
Following her victory, Cameron immediately set her conditions for a potential rematch, insisting that any second instalment must be contested over three-minute rounds rather than the standard two-minute format.
"She wanted the weight, she wanted the twos, she wanted to have her name first, which is actually fine because we're not going to get into that," Cameron said in her post-fight press conference. "If we want the rematch we have to do three-minute rounds. I'll speak to my team, I would like to do three-minute rounds, if it means vacating the WBC belt again I don't mind doing that."
Cameron's coach, Jamie Moore, confirmed that vacating the World Boxing Council belt is a real possibility if the sanctioning body refuses to sanction three-minute rounds for the rematch.
"I think in general, Chantelle is much better over three minutes," Moore said. "There's an issue with the WBC, and Chantelle is going to speak to her team to see if she might vacate the belt. Chantelle is adamant that, for female boxing moving forward, to be on the same level as men's boxing, it's got to be three-minute rounds."
Weigh-In Altercation and Post-Fight Clash
Tensions between the fighters had boiled over on the eve of the fight during Friday's official weigh-in. A physical altercation and fierce verbal exchange erupted between Cameron and Mayer, forcing event security to step in and split them apart.
Cameron believed the pre-fight confrontation worked directly in her favor when the opening bell rang on Saturday.
"I think she messed up, I think maybe it was too nicey nicey and friendly," Cameron said. "I did genuinely respect her. I was a fan of her. But the way she's coming on, I just think she's made a bit of a fool of herself. I knew that. I was looking at her before the bell rang and thought, I'm gonna smash your head in. And I think it worked. I was feeling the energy she didn't want to be in there, I could feel it."
The hostility spilled over again after the final bell as Mayer disputed the official decision inside the ring, prompting Cameron to declare that any second fight would take place strictly on her own terms.
"I just wanted to play with her," Cameron told Sky Sports. "If you're going to say you'll stop me, beat me easily, talk is so cheap, and I showed that tonight. Don't talk too much game, you've got to back it."
"I want to do this again," Cameron added. "It's up to Mikaela, but I want to do three-minute rounds. I'll speak to my team and see if Mikaela wants it, but didn't you say you were going to beat me so bad that I wasn't going to want a rematch?"
Cameron continued her verbal assault on her opponent during post-fight interviews.
"You were talking so much nonsense I actually fell asleep for a second!" Cameron said. "Three-minute rounds, let's do it. Go back to the gym, work on your power, work on your fitness, work on your speed, work on your boxing, make some improvements, because your team aren't doing a great job are they! You're boring, go home!"
Mayer Disputes Decision and Demands US Venue
Mayer strongly disputed the judges' decision following her defeat, claiming that she had outboxed the British fighter on her home soil.
"I did beat you Chantelle. You are lucky in your little back yard," Mayer said. "You can have your rematch. Three-minute rounds. If you want to vacate your WBC belt you can do that. It's your prerogative now. I'll just kick your ass even harder."
The American former unified super-featherweight champion made it clear that she would not return to the UK for a second bout.
"But it won't be here. It won't be in the UK. If you want to come to the US you can," Mayer said. "I outboxed you. I'll go back and rewatch it and give an honest evaluation, but I just beat you. If the public says I'm wrong you can have that, my initial feeling is I outboxed her."
Pound-for-Pound Hierarchy and Future Opponents
Despite describing Saturday's win as the finest achievement of her professional career, Cameron downplayed suggestions that the result made her the greatest female boxer of all time.
"I'll say it's my best win, I really enjoyed it tonight," Cameron said. "I still think Claressa Shields is the best, I won't be deluded, Mikaela would, but Claressa is still No 1."
Claressa Shields is an undefeated American multi-division world champion and two-time Olympic gold medallist, while Lauren Price is an Olympic gold medallist and reigning world champion from Wales. The World Boxing Council (WBC), World Boxing Association (WBA) and World Boxing Organization (WBO) are three of the major international sanctioning bodies in professional boxing.
Nakisa Bidarian, co-founder of Most Valuable Promotions (MVP), welcomed the prospect of a rematch between Cameron and Mayer while highlighting other potential super-fights for the newly unified champion.
"I think Chantelle said it, she'd like to do the rematch, she'd like to sit down with the WBC and do three minute rounds, it's where she wants to be," Bidarian told reporters. "She has said to us from the jump she would like to fight Claressa Shields and from the jump said she would like to fight Lauren Price, she's up for fighting anyone. Unequivocally, if she's not the GWOAT, she's one of the top two or three ever."
