British-Somali boxer Ramla Ali became a world champion for the first time at the age of 36 on Sunday night after escaping with a contentious 10-round split decision over former sparring partner Mikiah Kreps. The bout took place at College Park Center in Arlington, Texas, with the vacant WBO and IBF women’s junior featherweight titles on the line.
Ali grew up in east London after fleeing Somalia’s civil war with her family and later became the first boxer to represent the African country at the Olympics. She completed her journey to the top of the 122lb division on her second attempt at a world championship. The verdict sparked immediate debate after a fight largely controlled by her opponent.
Ali took the early upper hand by scoring a knockdown in the third round when Kreps touched the canvas with her glove after taking a right hook flush to the chin. Kreps responded by ramping up her volume and applying relentless pressure that disrupted Ali’s rhythm. The 30-year-old American consistently got the better of the exchanges as the contest progressed.
The ringside arbiters were sharply divided at the final bell. Ali prevailed by scores of 97-92 and 96-93, while the third judge favoured Kreps 98-91.
Compubox punch statistics cast doubt on the outcome. Kreps outlanded Ali by 115 blows to 78 overall, including a 91-70 edge in power shots, while connecting on a greater number of punches in eight of the 10 rounds. The New Yorker threw 525 punches to Ali’s 346, maintaining a higher work rate throughout.
When the scores were announced, an overwhelmed Ali dropped to her knees and wept. She spoke afterward about her father, who died in May, mentioning that her trainer had invoked his memory before the fight.
When we were in the changing room, my coach said, because my dad passed away in May, ‘Do this for him,’ Ali said during an in-ring interview. That’s where those emotions came out at the end, because I did it for my dad.
Ali also paid tribute to Kreps, acknowledging her opponent’s industry and crowding tactics. Every time I went to the corner, I kept saying, ‘I’m so tired. I’m so tired,’ because your work rate was just next level, she said.
Promoter Lou DiBella was among those outraged by the verdict and called for an investigation into the scoring. Mikiah Kreps won that fight and it wasn’t close, DiBella wrote on social media.
In the main event of the card, three-belt junior lightweight champion Alycia Baumgardner moved up to 135lb and added the IBF lightweight title with a unanimous decision over Elif Nur Turhan.
