Top 10 Female Boxers of All Time
Women’s boxing has always been overshadowed by men’s boxing, which is really a shame. There have been some really talented women that have stepped into the squared circle.
Only the really hardcore fight fans know who the all time great female boxers are. So we at Boxing Daily would really encourage you to get into women’s boxing and support these great athletes.
This is why we put together our list of the top 10 female boxers of all time. We’ve provided a small biography on each fighter below for you to learn a little bit about them.
10. Mia St John
DOB: June 24th 1967
Birthplace: San Francisco, California
Nickname: The Knockout
Records: 49-14-2, 1-0(MMA)
Championships: WBC, IFA, IBA Lightweight championships
“The Knockout” got into boxing late when she was 29 years old. St John made a huge splash in the boxing world with her knockout power and good looks to match.
She would go undefeated in her first 22 bouts with the majority coming by way of knockout. In 1999, her stardom reached her peak after being the cover girl for the November issue of Playboy.
Mia’s career would last over 20 years with three world championships to her name. Fighting the world’s best female fighters including three all time greats on our list in Christy Martin, Holly Holm, Cecilia Braekus.
9. Christy Martin
DOB: June 12th, 1968
Birthplace: Mullens, West Virginia
Nickname: The Coal Miner’s Daughter
Record: 49-7-3
Championships: WBC Female Super Welterweight Title
Fighting out of West Virginia, Christy Martin was as tough as they come. She was one of the first female boxers that started to get notoriety for her talent in the early 90s.
After going 2-1-1 in her first 4 bouts, Martin would then go undefeated for the next 9 years. Becoming a start in the sport.
Martin also lived a turbulent life as documented in the Netflix documentary Untold: Deal With The Devil. Detailing her rise to fame that was overshadowed by her ex husband’s abuse and murder attempt.
Christy had a 23 year fight career and now runs her own promotion on the east coast.
8. Katie Taylor
DOB: July 2nd 1986
Birthplace: Bray, Ireland
Nickname: KT
Record: 18-0
Championships: Olympic Gold medalist, 5x amateur world champion, current undisputed lightweight champion holding a recognized titles
Katie “KT” Taylor is the greatest Irish women’s boxer of all time. Also quite possibly will be the pound for pound best boxer in the history of Ireland when she hangs up her gloves.
Taylor had an all time great run as an amateur boxer. From 2005-2016, Katie won nearly every major amateur championship multiple times. This included a gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics, 5 amateur world championships, and 12 different European championships.
She finally went pro in 2016 and has continued her dominant run as a boxer. KT has gone 18-0 since turning pro with 6 KOs.
At this moment, Taylor is the undisputed women’s lightweight champion of the world. Having won all of the recognized boxing titles in the world. The 35 year old Irish champion is far from being done with boxing and will continue adding to her legacy.
7. Ann Wolfe
DOB: January 17th, 1971
Birthplace: Austin, Texas
Nickname: Brown Sugar
Record: 24-1 and 1 no contest
Championships: IFBA Middleweight title, WIBA Middleweight title, IFBA Super Middleweight title, WIBC Super Middleweight title, WBA-NABA Super Middleweight title, WIBA Light Heavyweight title, IBA Light Heavyweight Title
Quite possibly the most feared knockout artist of all time in women’s boxing is Ann “Brown Sugar” Wolfe. Many considered her the Mike Tyson of women’s boxing with her power punching style.
In her whole career, Wolfe only tasted defeat one time early in her career before going on a reign of terror. Ann’s career would go from 1998 to 2006, where she won 16 of her 24 wins by vicious knockouts. Most notably her one punch knockout of Vonda Ward in 2004.
She would retire from boxing in 2006 holding 7 world titles in 3 different weight classes. After retiring, Wolfe would open a gym in Austin, Texas and train top fighters such as former contender James Kirkland.
6. Holly Holm
DOB: October 17th, 1981
Birthplace: Albuquerque, New Mexico
Nickname: The Preacher’s Daughter
Records: 33-2-3(Boxing) 14-1-7(Kickboxing) 14-5(MMA)
Championships 16 different world titles in boxing and UFC Women’s Bantamweight champion
Holly Holm is the greatest multi sport athlete in combat sports history. Most know her for her time in MMA, but she was one of the most anticipated prospects to transition from boxing.
Within boxing, Holm would have a 11 year career and would go 33-2-3. For those 11 years, she would stay on top as one of the best female boxers in the world.
Before transitioning to MMA full time, Holm would win 16 recognized world titles in boxing. Also winning fighter of the year multiple times in different organizations.
5. Lucia Rijker
DOB: December 6th, 1967
Birthplace: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Nickname: The Dutch Destroyer
Records: 17-0(Boxing) 35-0-1(Kickboxing)
Championships: WIBF Super Lightweight title, WIBO Junior Welterweight title,
Before Holly Holm came onto the scene, the greatest multiple sport combat athlete was Lucia Rijker. The Dutch Destroyer would crush her competition in kickboxing and later in boxing.
From 1982-1994 she went undefeated in kickboxing with a 37-0-1 record. Her last win would come at the 1994 K1 GP in Tokyo.
In 1996, Rijker would make her professional boxing debut and continue her winning ways. Going 17-0 in her career and winning 2 titles.
Lucia would also start her acting career with her biggest role in the Oscar winning Million Dollar Baby. Then in 2014, Rijker would be inducted into the first class of the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
4. Cecilia Braekus
DOB: September 28th, 1981
Birthplace: Cartagena, Columbia
Nickname: The First Lady
Record: 36-2
Championships: 5 different titles in the women’s welterweight division
The greatest Norwegian female boxer of all time is Cecilia “The First Lady” Braekus. Before Braekus got into boxing, she started out in semi contact amateur kickboxing.
Within amateur kickboxing, Cecilia would win the WAKO world championship and one European championship. Then she would get into amateur boxing, where she would win the amateur European championship in 2005.
Then after a superb amateur career, Braekus would make her pro debut in 2007. For a 12 year period, Cecilia was without a doubt the best femaleEuropean boxer on the planet.
Going 36-0 and winning over 5 championships within the women’s welterweight division. One of only 9 fighters male or female to hold all of the major boxing titles at one time.
She finally tasted defeat twice against Jessica McCaskill, but is looking to bounce back from those losses.
3. Laila Ali
DOB: December 30th, 1977
Birthplace: Miami Beach, Florida
Nickname: She Bee Stingin
Record: 24-0
Championships: 5 different world titles in the women’s super middleweight division
The daughter of a legend and one of the greatest of all time made a name all her own. Laila Ali is one of the greatest female boxers to ever put on a pair of gloves.
Many feared that Laila would be overshadowed by her father’s legacy, but she made a nice niche for herself. Even doing something her father couldn’t and retired as an unbeaten father.
From the moment she started fighting, the spotlight was on Laila and she shined. Ali made history with being the first PPV main evented by a women’s boxing match.
In her 24 wins, Ali would have an astounding 21 knockouts. Making her like her father, an all time great in women’s boxing.
2. Claressa Shields
DOB: March 17th, 1995
Birthplace: Flint, Michigan
Nickname: T-Rex
Records: 11-0(Boxing) 1-0(MMA)
Championships: 2x Olympic Gold Medalist, Undisputed Women’s Middleweight Champion
She is currently the biggest name in women’s boxing and has been making waves ever since she was an amateur. Claressa “T-Rex” Shields at 26 has already done what no female boxer has done before.
Being the one of the first female boxers to win 2 consecutive Olympic Gold medals before going professional. Then before she was 26 years old, she became the undisputed women’s middleweight champion of the world.
Claressa is a talented fighter and knows she’s talented. Shields has been leading the charge to get women’s boxing the spotlight they have been fighting for years to get.
Now she has branched off into MMA, where her goal is to become the first simultaneous boxing and MMA champion.
1. Amanda Serrano
DOB: October 9th, 1988
Birthplace: Carolina, Puerto Rico
Nickname: The Real Deal
Record: 43-1-1
Championships: 9 world championships in 7 different weight classes
Our choice for the greatest female boxer of all time is Amanda “The Real Deal” Serrano. No one in women’s boxing has done what Serrano has done in the history of the sport
Serrano in her career has won over 9 world titles in 7 different weight classes. Including becoming the unified women’s featherweight champion.
As of now, Amanda is ranked as the pound for pound best female boxer in the world by numerous major outlets. At 32, Serrano is only going to add to her legacy as the greatest female boxer of all time.
