Fifty wins, one record left standing
Amanda Serrano got the number she wanted and missed the one she chased. Overnight in Temecula, California, the Puerto Rican retained her WBA and WBO featherweight belts by majority decision over Lucrecia Manzur, moving to 50-4-1 with 32 knockouts. Two judges had it 116-112 for Serrano. The third saw 114-114.
Those 32 knockouts still tie her with Christy Martin for the most by a female professional. Martin watched from ringside, having said before the opening bell that she was in Serrano’s corner whatever happened. Twelve rounds later the record remained shared, and Serrano sounded fine with that.
“I just love being a woman in this sport and helping women’s boxing grow beautifully,” she said afterwards.
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Manzur turned it into a fight
Manzur arrived at 14-5 with seven knockouts, fighting outside Argentina for the first time in her career and riding a five-fight winning streak. She pressed Serrano to the ropes in the opening round and matched her in the centre of the ring in the second. By the fourth she had opened a cut on Serrano’s forehead during a run of scrappy inside exchanges and led on the unofficial cards.
The middle rounds belonged to her too. Manzur used a pawing right hand to hold distance in the fifth and found Serrano’s chin repeatedly in the seventh. Serrano only reclaimed the fight over the closing frames, pressing hard enough in the eighth and ninth to swing the scorecards back.
CompuBox data explains the closeness. Serrano threw far more, landing 142 of 346 power punches at 41 percent, but connected on only 25 percent of her total output. Manzur landed 118 of 283 power shots at 42 percent and hit 34 percent of everything she threw. The Argentine was simply more efficient.
What happens next
Serrano has said the next fight is meant to be the last of her career, with the opponent still to be named. The bout headlined a Most Valuable Promotions card streamed live on TikTok, another sign of how far the promotional model for women’s boxing has drifted from traditional pay-per-view.
In the co-main event, 2024 U.S. Olympian Jahmal Harvey moved to 4-0 with a knockout of Hammet Kowany Keb del Valle at 2:48 of the second round.
Manzur, through a translator: “Tonight was a dream come true.” She then turned to Serrano. “Thanks to you, you really helped put female boxing on a pedestal.”
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