WBC Makes History With Significant Move
Over the past few years, women’s boxing has produced some of the top title fights out there. From Katie Taylor v. Delfine Persoon to the recent Terri Harper v. Natasha Jonas bout, their efforts have been noticed. One governing body has recently kept an eye on things, enough to change the way we view the sport of boxing.
During the World Boxing Council Convention this past weekend, President Mauricio Sulaiman announced that all belts under the WBC banner will be similar to men and women. As part of the WBC’s gender equality project, pink belts with plates that say “women” on the title have been removed.
“It is the first belt for women that does not have the inscription of ‘female’. The women asked for this show of fairness, and now each of our champions will receive this exact belt. Usually the belt for them was smaller, with the design of a flower, details in pink, but we’ve heard from them and now the belt is exactly the same as that of the male branch,” said Sulaiman, via Boxing Scene.
Jessica McCaskill became the first woman to hold the new titles. She was able to beat longtime welterweight champion Cecilia Braekhus on the streets of Tulsa, Oklahoma. Headlining the Matchroom Boxing show, McCaskill (9-2) was able to win the WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, IBO, and The Ring Welterweight Titles, ending Braekhus’ quest to break Joe Louis’ record of consecutive title defenses.
Manager Rick Ramos would make an announcement on social media, posting on Instagram:
“Good morning – Jessica Mccaskill is the first female to own a male version of the WBC belt. Going forward the female “Green Belt” will be the same size as the men’s belt and the belts will NOT say “female.” It’s an honor to be the 1st.”
Female fighters and fans have been looking for significant changes to be made in the sport, whether it be different titles, equal pay, and more time in the ring.
The next time we may see the new belts could be this weekend. On August 22, Katie Taylor will defend her WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring Lightweight Titles in a rematch against Delfine Persoon.