To give credit where it’s due. Amanda Serrano surely believes in the adage. The 35-year-old undisputed featherweight champion joined several fans in celebrating the victory of a former opponent. Yesterday, Erika Cruz defeated Venezuela’s Mayerlin Rivas in a nail-biting finish to become the WBA (female) light featherweight champion. Cruz won the ten-round fight via majority decision.

Taking to her X account, Serrano congratulated Erika Cruz on becoming a two-division world champion. Calling her a true warrior, the Puerto Rican boxer recalled how Cruz spoke about their fight in February. Amanda Serrano said, “She’s a true warrior! acknowledged our war. Said how she fought the best, & I opted to go toe to toe with her. We showed the world we are monsters! I’m super proud & happy for her. Que viva.”

From one legend to another in the making

Many of the fans appreciated Erika Cruz’s fighting spirit. However, for most, Serrano’s sportsmanship was the highlight. No wonder some of them even took the opportunity to admire ‘The Real Deal.’

Congratulating both Amanda Serrano and Erika Cruz, the following user emphasized that whenever a fight is tight-close, only one can emerge victorious. The user wished all fights were this close.

Lauding Cruz’s character, this fan pointed out that it wasn’t her finest hour. Hence, it may be that she needs some downtime to recover. Currently, women’s boxing boasts a number of outstanding champions.

This fan lauded Amanda Serrano for representing the highest standards of excellence and called her the pride of Puerto Rico.

Agreeing with Amanda Serrano’s reply to a user, the following fan said that in the end, it all comes down to the judges’ discretion. The user still finds it difficult to forget how ‘The Real Deal’ got the rough end of the stick during the fight against Katie Taylor. Serrano definitely deserves a rematch, according to the user. Calling themselves die-hard fans of the champion, the user highlighted applying many of her techniques in their game.

To this fan, Serrano is a cut above.

It is genuinely encouraging that a whole bunch of new generations look up to Amanda Serrano as a role model. With her record of 46 wins and only 2 losses, the Puerto Rican boxer is widely considered one of the greatest boxers of the modern era. Fans expect many more years of boxing from her.

The never-give-up spirit of Amanda Serrano

After last year’s loss to Katie Taylor, Serrano went to featherweight and became a unified champion after defeating Sarah Mahfoud on September 24, 2022. Four months later, she returned, challenging Erika Cruz for her WBA featherweight belt. In a closely contested bout, Serrano defeated Cruz to become an undisputed champion. In August, she faced Heather Hardy during the first title defense.

Two months later, Serrano was back in the ring for the third time in the year. She faced Danila Ramos. But this time ‘The Real Deal’ and Ramos created history by fighting a full 12-round bout, with each round lasting three minutes. Last year, she checked with Taylor to see if their Madison Square Garden fight could be made into a 12-round contest. However, the call-out didn’t bear any fruit. Finally, with it happening on October 27 this year, women’s boxing has definitely crossed another milestone.

Read More: “Today We Have So Much…”: Weeks After Creating History, Amanda Serrano Reflects on Her Journey Thus Far

After Serrano’s recent fight, do you think more and more women’s bouts should become 12-round events with a 3-minute round each? Please share your views with us in the comments below.

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