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Natasha Jonas-Lauren Price IBF, WBC and WBA 147lbs title fight set for March 7

Natasha Jonas and Lauren Price are to contest the IBF, WBC and WBA welterweight titles at London’s York Hall on March 7.

Jonas on Saturday won the WBC title from Croatia’s Ivana Habazin with victory in their unification contest on Saturday in her home city of Liverpool, where Lauren Price retained her WBA title by stopping the previously unbeaten Bexcy Mateus of Colombia.

As with the undisputed middleweight title fight between Claressa Shields and Savannah Marshall in 2022, Jonas-Price will headline an all-female promotion.

“It’s an honour to be headlining this incredible all-women’s event at such an iconic venue,” said Jonas, 40. “It shows how far women’s boxing has come. Throughout my career, I have broken down barriers and achieved what people said I couldn’t, and there is still a lot more to come.

“Lauren Price has a lot of hype around her but I believe this fight is going to be a step too far for her. I’ve been in big fights, I’ve fought world champions and Olympic medallists, but she’s never faced anyone like me as a pro

Wales’ Price won an Olympic medal at Tokyo 2020 – two Games later than Jonas, who became Britain’s first female boxer to win a medal, at London 2012 – and she said: “I’m excited to headline such a huge occasion. I have a lot of respect for Natasha Jonas and what she has achieved in the sport, but she has the belts that I want. When I turned professional after becoming Olympic champion, I wanted to create greatness.

“This fight, a big all-British unification clash, Wales versus England with five world titles on the line, will help cement my legacy and show that I am number one in the division. I believe I’m too young, too quick and too good for Natasha Jonas and I will be bringing the belts back home to Wales with me.”

Boxxer’s Ben Shalom promotes both Jonas and the 30-year-old Price, and he said: “This is a game-changing event on every level. At the very top of the show are two fantastic champions and role models, Natasha Jonas and Lauren Price, who have the chance to win it all in a massive unification fight.

“Fans will get to see many more of the world’s best boxers competing in career-defining fights in one of the world’s most iconic venues, the Royal Albert Hall. This will be a stand out event for women’s sport at the highest level and we are also proud to be working with International Women’s Day 2025 to take positive action.”

Boxxer preparing to relaunch women's boxing in 2025

Boxxer are planning to match Natasha Jonas and Lauren Price in an all-female bill in London in March to lead a wider attempt to prioritise rebuilding women’s boxing in the UK.

The 40-year-old Jonas retained her IBF welterweight title and dethroned Croatia’s Ivana Habazin as the WBC champion with victory in Liverpool on Saturday – when Price, 30, retained her WBA title while becoming the first to defeat Bexcy Mateus of Colombia.

A fight for all three titles was already on course before they entered the ring that night, and Ben Shalom’s Boxxer, the organisation that oversaw Claressa Shields-Savannah Marshall at the top of a popular all-female bill in 2022, hopes to feature them on the same card as the WBC lightweight champion Caroline Dubois and potentially Francesca Hennessy.

The Saudi Arabian influence on boxing has contributed to the domestic fight scene in the UK, and women’s boxing globally, becoming neglected, but Shalom told Boxing Scene: “We’re looking at something very special. Women’s boxing, if you look at 2022, 2023, was the shining star of British boxing. Everyone was talking about, ‘Why can’t the men be more like the women?’. Men’s boxing’s had a renaissance with Riyadh Season, but women’s boxing, other than [Katie] Taylor-[Amanda] Serrano this year, hasn’t had the same.

“So we’re looking at a big women’s night in early March, in London, at a very prestigious venue that usually doesn’t host boxing, and it’s going to be something very special. In an ideal world, the winners [Jonas and Price] will be on the card.

“Sky Sports are massively, massively passionate about women’s sport, and that’s where we’re going to see the most success [in 2025]. There’s a huge responsibility at Boxxer to make sure women’s boxing gets back to where it was and where we helped to get it to. The plans that I can see going into next year, around Lauren, around Caroline, around Fran – even talk of Savannah Marshall coming back for her rematch – and Natasha Jonas. There’s going to be some big nights.

“We want women’s boxing to be back on the front pages; on the back pages; and we think our women’s night, with Lauren and Caroline and even Fran coming through – there’s some seriously good talent there that can be the next Savannah Marshall, Katie Taylor and Natasha Jonas that we’ve had so much success from.”

The talented Dubois makes the first defence of her title against Canada’s Jessica Camara on January 11, and asked she will have enough time to prepare for a date in March, Shalom replied: “We want the Terri Harper fight that we think makes sense – a unification. That’s the fight that we want; we’ve already put big offers in for that fight, and it’s the biggest money that Terri Harper could hope to earn for any fight, so fingers crossed that gets done.”

I read it's at the Royal Albert Hall.

mickey1975 wrote: ↑17 Dec 2024, 04:43 I read it's at the Royal Albert Hall.

Maybe..

Just going off the article for now.

Did think it was a bit crappy to have it at York Hall.

They want to do an all female card.

That's all Shalom seems to be excelling at.

Price is going to smash Jonas

Shalom given an ultimatum..more women's boxing or your contracts gone son !

Natasha Jonas and Lauren Price to headline all-female bill at Royal Albert Hall

British boxing rivals Natasha Jonas and Lauren Price will contest a world welterweight unification fight on International Women’s Day 2025.

The fighters will headline an all-women’s world championship boxing event taking place at the Royal Albert Hall in London on Friday, 7 March.

The announcement comes days after they both successfully retained their world titles with wins in Liverpool on Saturday, 14 December.

Lauren Price defended her WBA title with a third-round stoppage of Colombian Bexcy Mateus and Natasha Jonas added the WBC title to her IBF belt by beating Ivana Habazin.

Speaking about next year’s contest, Liverpudlian Jonas said: “It’s an honour to be headlining this incredible all-women’s event at such an iconic venue. It shows how far women’s boxing has come.

“Throughout my career, I have broken down barriers and achieved what people said I couldn’t, and there is still a lot more to come.

“Lauren Price has a lot of hype around her but I believe this fight is going to be a step too far for her. I’ve been in big fights, I’ve fought world champions and Olympic medallists, but she’s never faced anyone like me as a pro.”

Welsh fighter Price added: “I’m excited to headline such a huge occasion. I have a lot of respect for Natasha Jonas and what she has achieved in the sport, but she has the belts that I want.

“When I turned professional after becoming Olympic champion, I wanted to create greatness.

"This fight, a big all-British unification clash, Wales versus England with five world titles on the line, will help cement my legacy and show that I am number one in the division.

“I believe I’m too young, too quick and too good for Natasha Jonas and I will be bringing the belts back home to Wales with me.”

I don’t mind the fight but I don’t like the idea of all women’s shows. The elite are good but there are very few of them.

Why does women’s boxing need a restart? There were good women’s fights this year with Taylor/Serrano 2 and Mayer/Ryan.

Looking forward to this one. Good matchup.

Expect loads of free tickets given away for this. Like the last all woman bill.

I’ve got zero interest in this one personally. However, I can’t see Jonas winning.

They'd get higher ratings for Inner City Sumo or monkey tennis

Yeah, loads of tickets given away to make it a packed to the rafters sell out
Commentary going on like it's hagler v hearns
There should be an option on the poll for couldn't care less
Woke crap.

It's the same as Women's PL, it appeals to a limited audience and once they go in the big stadiums tickets are given away or sold for a quid or 2.
So it will be Dubios, Artingstall and all the others that won't sell a ticket for this.
The only way to make this sell is a Shannon Courtney Ebanie Bridges rematch on the card

tony1234 wrote: ↑19 Dec 2024, 13:06 It's the same as Women's PL, it appeals to a limited audience and once they go in the big stadiums tickets are given away or sold for a quid or 2.
So it will be Dubios, Artingstall and all the others that won't sell a ticket for this.
The only way to make this sell is a Shannon Courtney Ebanie Bridges rematch on the card

Agreed. It's the dogmatic,unrealistic reluctance to face facts that amazes me.
If you don't go with the narrative you get labelled a misogynistic gammon arsehole

Ruthless-RKO wrote: ↑21 Jan 2025, 10:23

Karriss Artingstall vs Raven Chapman is a good match up. But shows Turki has zero interest in the womens side if Frank is letting Champan g over and fight on sky.

We complain about women’s fights and then complain that Turki isn’t showing women’s fights?

Sky’s a better platform anyway.

Karriss Artingstall-Raven Chapman, Cindy Ngamba added to March 7 show

Having signed promotional terms with Boxxer, Olympian Cindy Ngamba will make her professional bow at the Royal Albert Hall in London on March 7.

Cameroon-born Ngamba won a bronze for the Refugee Team at the Paris 2024 Games when the 26-year-old defeated reigning world champion Tamara Thibeault in her opening bout. Ngamba then went on to beat France’s Davina Michel to book her spot on the podium.

Ngamba moved to the UK when she was 10 and, aged 15, she started fighting out of Bolton’s Elite Boxing Gym. She won national titles in three weight classes, too, but because she did not have a British passport she could not represent Team GB.

Now she will make her debut on a bill topped by the all-British welterweight title clash between Natasha Jonas and Lauren Price, with WBC lightweight champion Caroline Dubois also on the bill as well as a big fight at featherweight between 6-0 (1 KO) Karriss Artingstall and Raven Chapman, 9-1 (2 KOs), who are former amateur rivals and national teammates.

“I’m excited to start this new journey as a professional with Boxxer and Sky Sports,” said Ngamba. “My main goal before the Olympics was to challenge myself. I feel like on this pathway I will be able to continue to challenge myself and grow as a fighter. I have shared the ring with the best of the best in the Olympics and as an amateur. I want to share the ring with the best as a professional and push myself as far as I can go… It is time for me to show what I am capable of and to continue to represent myself, Great Britain and all the refugees around the world.”

Boxxer promoter Ben Shalom said he was excited to add Ngamba to his stable.

“She is an incredible athlete,” said Shalom. “She has had a phenomenal amateur career, and I am looking forward to working with her and helping her to achieve great things in the professional ranks. She is a fantastic addition to our stable and to our landmark all-women’s boxing event on March 7th at the Royal Albert Hall.”

Dubois will fight Bo Mi Re Shin

Ruthless-RKO wrote: ↑01 Feb 2025, 17:59 Dubois will fight Bo Mi Re Shin

Slug fest, tough girl Bo, game as a badger.

CaptainSpacerod wrote: ↑18 Dec 2024, 18:38 They'd get higher ratings for Inner City Sumo or monkey tennis

I@m SO up for monkey tennis - is it even real ?

Fight Week!!

Seeing as it's fight week? are we moving this to British section please?

Ruthless-RKO wrote: ↑21 Jan 2025, 11:51 We complain about women’s fights and then complain that Turki isn’t showing women’s fights?

Sky’s a better platform anyway.

Surely no one complains that Turks isn't showing women's fights? Nobody of sane mind at least