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Best Female Boxer of All Time: The Complete List
Best female boxer of all time, it’s a tough one to choose. Boxing has a rich history and it has produced many icons. People see boxing as a male-dominated sport, and not many recognize the great female boxers who have graced this sport.
Women’s boxing has become prominent in recent years and it has created a fair number of sporting heroes. Shortlisting the best athletes in boxing is a daunting task. Every boxing fan will always create a unique list.
Let’s take a look at some of the prominent women who have established themselves as boxing legends. We have Laila Ali at the top of the list, yes, but maybe you see someone else deserving of the top slot.
Laila Ali
Laila Ali is regarded as perhaps the best female boxer of all time by some.
She made her debut on October 8, 1999, at the age of 21.
In a career that spanned seven years, Laila Ali had a perfect record of 24-0, with 21 of those wins coming via knockout. Her final fight was on Feb 3, 2007, against Gwendolyn O’Neil, where she won by a technical knockout in the first round.
Laila held several world championships including the WIBF Light Heavyweight title, and the IBA, WIBF, WIBA, and WBC Super Middleweight titles. In 2021, Laila Ali was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
Laila Ali is the daughter of Muhammad Ali, also considered to be the greatest boxer ever. That in itself helps her legacy and makes it more likely she gets chosen when we discuss the best female boxer of all time.
Katie Taylor “The Bray Bomber”
Katie Taylor, a 37-year-old Irish professional boxer, had a meteoric rise in the boxing world. She turned professional after representing Ireland in the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Taylor’s first professional bout was against Karina Kopinska at the age of 30. Since her professional debut, Katie Taylor has fought 23 times, won 22 times, and lost once.
Her first loss, which was by a majority decision, came in the bout against Chantelle Cameron in May 2023.
Katie Taylor is the current lineal world lightweight champion and has held the titles since 2019. She also became the lineal champion at light welterweight after she defeated Chantelle Cameron in their rematch in November 2023. As the only female boxer to achieve undisputed status in multiple weight classes, Katie Taylor ranks high on any list of the best female boxers of all time.
One of Taylor’s best victories came against Amanda Serrano, who also features on this list of greats.
Taylor has held the WBO super-lightweight title as well as the WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring lightweight titles. She gets some love when pondering the best female boxer of all time.
Lucia Rijker, On the Best Female Boxer of All Time List
Lucia Rijker is a four-time world champion who was at one point got referred to as “The most dangerous woman in the world,” “Queen of Lightning,” and “Lady Ali.”
Rijker made her professional boxing debut in 1996. She has a sterling record of 17-0 with 14 of those wins coming through knockouts.
Rijker was also a successful professional kickboxer. She won all of her 36 kickboxing bouts where she landed 25 KOs in the first round.
Widely renowned for her speed and strength, Rijker is rightly regarded as one of the best female boxers to ever exist.
Rijker’s final fight was in 2004 and she was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2019.
She could lay claim to being the best female boxer of all time.
Cecilia Braekhus “The First Lady”
Cecilia Braekhus, born in 1981, is Norway’s most accomplished female boxer.
Also known as “The First Lady” Cecilia holds the IBF, IBO, WBA, WBC, and WBO welterweight titles. Cecilia’s boxing career spanned 16 years and eight months where she fought 40 times, won 37 bouts, lost 2, and drew once.
She made her professional boxing debut on January 20, 2007, at the age of 25 against Ksenija Koprek. Her latest fight was on October 7, 2023, when she won against Terri Harper. We covered it, and yes, many thought Braekhus deserved to lose.
Despite being 36 years old, Cecilia Braekhus competes at the highest level of professional boxing against younger and more athletic boxers.
She is recognised for being one of the great performers of her generation and within her region, plenty see her as the best female boxer of all time.
Regina Halmich
Halmich fought pro from 1994-2007
Regina Halmich is a German professional boxer, who is recognized for leading the female boxing revolution in Europe.
Halmich had her first professional boxing bout on March 4, 1994, when she was only 17 years old.
Her career spanned 13 years and eight months and she had a record of 54 wins, one loss, and a single draw from a total of 56 fights. Halmich’s last fight was on November 30, 2007, when she won against Hagar Finer by majority decision.
In 2022, Halmich was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame.
In 2016, American boxing magazine “The Ring” famously referred to Halmich as the second-best female boxer of all time. Some say she’s the best female boxer of all time.
Ann Wolfe
Ann Wolfe, also known as “Brown Sugar,” is an American ex boxer who is widely regarded as one of the greatest female fighters of all time.
Wolfe is also recognized by some as the most powerful female knockout puncher to ever exist.
Wolfe made her professional boxing debut in 1998 after participating in the USA National Championships as an amateur fighter.
Wolfe’s legacy is bolstered by her presence in film
In 2004, Wolfe won the IBA light heavyweight world title. At the same time, she held three world titles in different weight classes. Her final fight was a win against Lisa Ested on August 4, 2006.
Wolfe was inducted into the International Women’s Boxing Hall of Fame in 2015. Judging off the video below, some would award Wolfe best female boxer of all time honor from this display alone:
@the_counterist Ann Wolfe decimates Vonda Ward with overhand right counter #boxing #knockout #counterpunch #mma #muaythai #thecounterist #strikinganalysis
Claressa Shields
Claressa Shields is an American professional boxer who made her debut in November 2016 at the age of 21.
Claressa Shields has a perfect record of 14 wins from 14 fights with 2 KO wins.
She is also a three-weight-class world champion. Over her career, Claressa has won 13 titles in super-middleweight, middleweight, and super-lightweight.
One of Claressa’s main achievements in her career was winning a gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics. She also won another gold medal at the 2016 Olympics events held in Rio. Shields was named as WBAN’s Fighter of the Year on December 15, 2022.
She has been vocal in seeing herself as the best female boxer of all time for some time. Her personality can be off-putting to some, at times, so discussion of Shields as the ATG can get heated online.
Amanda Serrano
Amanda Serrano is one of the US’ most decorated female boxers.
Amanda fell in love with boxing after watching her elder sister Cindy Serrano fight as a professional boxer. Amanda Serrano is highly regarded as one of the most skillful female boxers of all time.
Serrano’s southpaw stance led her to 42 wins with 30 KOs, one draw, and two losses. She has a combination of boxing IQ and power, which makes her the ideal fighter.
What’s more impressive is that Serrano holds titles in seven weight classes, which makes her the all-time greatest pound-for-pound fighter.
She has held titles in super-lightweight, lightweight, super-featherweight, featherweight, super-bantamweight, bantamweight, and super-flyweight. Maybe she is the best female boxer of all time.
Nicola Adams “The Lioness”
Nicola “The Lioness” Adams is one of England’s greatest female boxers.
She started boxing at the age of 12 alongside her mother for fitness. Nicola’s boxing career was brief and includes five wins and one draw from six professional fights, with 3 KO wins.
Nicola made history by being the first woman to win an Olympic boxing gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics.
In 2016, Nicola etched her name into the list of boxing legends by becoming the first British boxer to defend her Olympic title for one century. And in just six pro fights, she won the WBO female flyweight title and defended it once. She was forced to end her career early after she suffered a torn pupil during her last fight against Maria Salinas. What she thought was a minor injury turned out to be a huge issue. She had to decide if she wanted to retire or risk losing her eyesight.
In 2019, She also held the WBO female flyweight title before she retired.
Nicola is the only female boxer in history to have won the Olympic, World, European, and Commonwealth titles. Her pro career didn’t run long so she won’t be atop too many lists of this sort.
Holly Holm
Holly Holm is a retired American boxer who now competes as a mixed martial artist in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
Holly made her professional boxing debut on January 25, 2002, and won by a TKO.
Holly’s southpaw stance led her to 33 wins, two losses, and three draws. She also held several welterweight boxing titles during her time as a professional boxer.
Following her retirement from pro boxing, In 2011, Holly decided to venture into mixed martial arts and made her debut with a win over Christina Domke. Her full transition was complete when she retired from boxing in 2013. She went on to win the UFC Bantamweight Championship in 2015 when she shocked the world with a KO against Ronda Rousey. Holm has been competing in the UFC since then.
Christy Martin, Best Female Boxer Of All Time?
Christy Martin, also known as “The Coal Miner’s Daughter” is a retired American professional boxer.
She made her pro debut in 1989 at the age of 21 and would retire 22 years later in 2012.
Christy Martin fought 59 times, won 49 of her fights, lost seven times, and drew 3 times.
She also held the WBC super-welterweight title. Her last fight was on August 14, 2012, and she lost to the legend Mia St. John by unanimous decision.
Christy Martin was the first female boxer to be inducted into the Nevada Boxing Hall of Fame. She is also held in high regard for being one of the pioneers of women’s boxing.
Christy is the most successful female boxer in the history of the United States, all things considered, it can be argued. Her story of perseverance separates her from most any pack. And while she won only one major belt, the fact that she fought nearly 60 times grants here a place in our list.
Mia St. John
Mia Rosales St. John is an American boxing legend who became a pro boxer in 1997 with no prior experience as an amateur fighter.
Nicknamed “The Knockout,” Mia St. John had an aggressive windmilling style that allowed her to land heavy shots on her opponents.
Her boxing record featured 49 wins, 14 losses, and two draws from 65 fights. Mia became a WBC super-welterweight world champion after beating Christy Martin in 2012.
Mia’s career lasted 19 years and two months and was one of the most popular and financially successful female pro boxers in history.
Her looks and personality also made her a media favorite and one of the most coveted female boxers in the US. She’d not get many votes as No. 1 on this list, but her longevity is impressive and earns her placement on this list and discussion of the best female boxer of all time.
Mary Kom
Mary Kom, nicknamed Magnificent Mary, is India’s most accomplished boxing ace.
Mary Kom holds the record of being the only female boxer to have won a medal in each of her first seven World Championships.
She also holds the record of being the only boxer to win eight World Championship medals.
Mary Kom finished as a medallist in the 2012 London Olympics and she also qualified for the 2016 Rio Olympics.
In 2014, Mary Kom became the first Indian female boxer to win a gold medal at the Asian Games, and the first Indian female boxer to win a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games in 2018.
In addition to being a boxer, Mary Kom also served as a Member of Parliament for Rajya Sabha, India.
Her achievements both in and out of the ring led to her receiving the title Meethoi Leima (exceptional lady) from the Government of India. The only thing that holds her legacy as a boxer back is the lack of a professional resume. She remained an amateur until the end of her career but her achievements representing India make her worth mentioning on this list.
Yesica Bopp
Yesica “Tuti” Bopp is a two-division world champion from Argentina. Tuti started boxing at the age of 16 in her hometown of Villa Dominico.
She had a successful international career as an amateur boxer between 2005 and 2007.
In March 2005, Tuti won the final of the Pan-American Women’s Championship, In the same year, she won a bronze medal at the World Championships held in Podolk, Russia.
Yesica also won the Pan-American Women’s Championship in 2006 and 2007.
Bop, from her Instagram page
Yesica held the WBA light-flyweight title between 2008 and 2019 and the WBO female light-flyweight between 2009 and 2013 as well as the WBO flyweight title in 2014.
At the peak of her career in 2020, Yesica Bopp was ranked as the best female light-flyweight boxer and is therefore on this best female boxer of all time list.
Ina Menzer
Ina Menzer is a German featherweight boxer born in Kazakhstan.
She made her professional debut on March 30, 2004. Menzer had a sterling record of 32 professional fights winning 31, with 11 KOs, and losing only once.
In the prime of her career, Menzer was the ultimate female featherweight boxer in Europe.
Menzer doesn’t dwell on her past, she looks to stay healthy and happy at present. Photo from Menzer IG
In 2010, Menzer held several titles including the WIBF, WBC, and WBO featherweight titles.
Later on in 2012, Menzer became the WBO European champion, and then the world WIBA champion in 2013. At the time of her retirement in 2013, Menzer held the WIBF Super Champion title.
Menzer was best known for being a skillful boxer who used powerful combinations to overpower her opponents. She is also regarded as one of the best female German boxers of all time.
Final Thoughts On Best Female Boxer of All Time
Is Laila Ali the best female boxer of all time? The women on this list are some of the top stars of all time.
They have won multiple championships, broken records, and created boxing history, yes indeed women’s boxing has created a fair share of icons and legends.
Other notable mentions who did not feature on this list include Susi Kentikian, Marcela Acuna, Kathy Long, and Melinda Cooper.
Picking the best performers in any sport is a difficult task, but that is what we love about boxing. Who do you think is the best female boxer of all time?
