By Michael Rothstein February 9, 2023
Source: ESPN
Photo Source: DANZ
Cecilia Braekhus is once again trying to become a two-division world champion.
The former world pound-for-pound No. 1 fighter will face WBA junior middleweight champion Terri Harper in April in Sheffield, England, Matchroom promoter Eddie Hearn announced Thursday in Harper's first defense of her belt.
Harper, 26, won the title last year by beating Hannah Rankin by unanimous decision in her first fight moving up from the junior lightweight and lightweight divisions. The 26-year-old Harper (13-1-1, 6 KO) has never fought outside of England.
Her only loss came in 2021 to Alycia Baumgardner, starting the ascent of Baumgardner to undisputed champion at junior lightweight. Now Harper is a champion at junior middleweight, which along with welterweight are the only divisions from featherweight to super middleweight without an undisputed champion.
Natasha Jonas has the WBC, IBF and WBO belts.
Braekhus, 41, is fighting her second straight bout at junior middleweight after spending most of her career at welterweight, where she was the WBA and WBC champion from 2009 to 2020, also picking up the WBO championship in 2010 and the IBF title in 2014.
Braekhus (37-2, 9 KO) lost the titles by majority decision to Jessica McCaskill on Aug. 15, 2020 and lost again to McCaskill in a rematch in March, 2021. McCaskill is the only fighter to have beaten Braekhus as a professional.
After losing to McCaskill, Braekhus didn't fight for over a year, returning to the ring in December to beat Marisa Joana Portillo by unanimous decision in a six-round fight at junior middleweight. Braekhus was supposed to fight then-WBC junior middleweight champion Patricia Berghult last summer, but the fight was postponed.
Instead, Berghult fought -- and lost -- to Jonas. Now, Braekhus will get her shot at a junior middleweight title.
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