Zambia’s Catherine Phiri, the new WBC female bantamweight champion

Zambia’s Catherine Phiri has made history, winning the World Boxing Council (WBC) bantamweight title defeating Mexican Yazmin Rivas in the sixth round in Mexico over the weekend.

The new champion won by a majority technical decision at the end of the sixth round.

WBC says, the fight  had to be stopped in the sixth round after a clash of heads in which Rivas sustained a cut over her right eyebrow, and Phiri was deducted a point, but still won.

According to World Boxing News, due to the injury, “the ringside physician, Ernesto Franco reviewed the gash and recommended the contest should be stopped, so referee Raul Caiz determined the result had to be defined in the cards”.

The two judges scored the outcome 58-56 and 59-55, both in favour of Phiri, while the third judge scored 57-57 to declare a remarkable victory for the new African champion.

Catherine Phiri Photo: World Boxing News/Zanfer

In a gripping bout, the Zambian fighter was reportedly, “aggressive, accurate and [threw] a lot of punches, although Rivas possessed the better technical quality in what was an interesting contest”.

Catherine becomes the first female Zambian and African to win the prestigious WBC title.

The new champion has received numerous congratulatory messages on social media. Zambian President Lungu posted on his Facebook page: “Congratulations to Catherine Phiri for becoming the new WBC champion. And thank you to Oriental Quarries, a company that has consistently supported this sport through Oriental Quarries Boxing Promotions. Catherine, the nation is proud of you”.

Source: World Boxing Council  and World Boxing News