Caroline Dubois marked her first fight with Jake Paul’s Most Valuable Promotions with a unanimous points win against Camilla Panatta on Friday.
Dubois (12-0-1 5 KOs) defended her WBC lightweight title with a dominant performance, with her impressive skill set on full display in Miami.
All three judges scored it 99-90 in favour of Dubois.
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Despite having not fought since March, the Brit hardly missed a beat and imposed herself from Round 1, landing a clean right hand early in the fight, and it was one-way traffic from there.
Dubois’ superior movement and footwork made it hard for Panatta (8-3-1, 1 KO) to land anything.
By Round 3, Dubois had ramped up the pressure, often leading with her right jab before launching a left hand which Panatta couldn’t cope with.
The Italian challenger was game and looked to force the action at times, but Dubois moved well throughout and proved evasive.
Caroline Dubois, right, defended her lightweight title in style Friday. Ed Mulholland/Getty Images for Netflix
Dubois got her reward in Round 6, with a big right hand from close range, dropping Panatta, who got back to her feet and only had a few seconds to survive before the end of the round.
Resisting the temptation to jump in and push for an early stoppage in Rounds 7 and 8, Dubois went back to her boxing.
Heading into the final round, trainer Shane McGuigan urged Dubois to “put the icing on the cake” and go for the stoppage, and while it didn’t come, she did sign off with a big right hand in an impressive American debut.
Cherneka Johnson beat Amanda Galle in a bloody, bruising fight. Carmen Mandato/Getty Images for Netflix
Later, Cherneka Johnson defended her undisputed bantamweight title with a unanimous win over Amanda Galle.
Johnson (19-2, 8 KOs) won 99-91, 98-92 and 97-93 on the judges’ scorecards.
The pair let their hands go from the opening bell and it was a sign of things to come. Johnson was cut above the left eye by the end of Round 1, while Galle (12-1-1,1 KO) was bloodied by the end of the next round.
The brutal fight was fought in the pocket for the majority, with Johnson landing the cleaner punches.
Galle’s output was impressive, and she caught Johnson on several occasions on the head and body, but the champion handled it well.
At the halfway point, the canvas needed to be wiped with so much blood spilled. Galle kept pushing until the final bell, but Johnson’s class shone through as she defended her titles for the first time.
