Chantelle Cameron beats Mikaela Mayer to become unified light-middleweight champion
Chantelle Cameron beat Mikaela Mayer at BP Pulse Arena on 29 August 2026 to add the WBA and WBC light-middleweight titles to her WBO belt, winning by unanimous decision in the main event of Most Valuable Promotions' fifth-anniversary show.
The judges scored the contest 97-93, 97-93 and 96-94 in favour of the British fighter. Mayer disputed the outcome, saying she "outboxed" Cameron, which led to an angry exchange of words in the ring and talk of a possible rematch; Cameron responded in the ring with the remark, "talk is cheap." Cameron remained unbeaten since her second fight with Katie Taylor in 2023, recording 23 victories in 24 professional encounters, and the result was described in the report as one of her best displays.
The fight was tightly contested across basic metrics, but Cameron's sustained pressure prevented Mayer from settling into a winning pattern. Mayer began the clearer aggressor but Cameron boxed off the back foot early before taking the initiative and forcing Mayer onto the ropes in round four and again at the start of round five. A heavy right to the chin in round seven was the standout blow for Cameron as Mayer struggled to establish her jab; the American was described as bleeding and breathing heavily by round six. Cameron was cut in the closing stages yet pushed through and was lifted shoulder high by her team before the victory was announced.
The event's atmosphere was muted compared with expectations after Moses Itauma v Filip Hrgovic was elevated to a world title fight on the undercard, a change that left this show feeling, in the report's words, like a support act. Reporters noted empty seats around the arena and estimated BP Pulse Arena was about half-full when the fighters walked to the ring. Tension between the main event principals had escalated on Friday at the weigh-in when Cameron shoved her head into Mayer and the American pushed back, with insults exchanged prior to fight night.
Both fighters arrived with similar profiles and, according to the report, were "evenly matched in every metric – from punch rate to height and weight, even hairstyle." Mayer played up her away status by entering to "American Woman" by Lenny Kravitz and wearing a black durag over her trademark blonde hair before removing it to reveal tight dreadlocks, the report noting the same style as Cameron. Despite the pre-fight parity, Cameron's front-foot work and pressure ultimately decided the contest.
For Mayer, the defeat was recorded as the third loss of a 25-fight career and it cost her the WBA and WBC belts, which Cameron now unites with her WBO title. The report stated this was Cameron's biggest win since beating Katie Taylor in Dublin three years ago and noted it was her first fight at BP Pulse Arena since November 2024 and her first since joining MVP.
Most Valuable Promotions co-founder Jake Paul was in attendance, the report recalling he headlined on 29 August 2021 when he beat Tyron Woodley but was in a watching brief for this show. MVP announced its next women's boxing arena event will take place in November in Texas, headlined by unified super-featherweight champion Alycia Baumgardner stepping up to lightweight to face Elif Nur Turhan, with world title fights on the undercard including Tiara Brown defending against Ellie Scotney and Skye Nicolson against Miyo Yoshida.
