With potential blockbuster fights underway, undisputed heavyweight champion Jessica McCaskill couldn’t afford to beat Alma Ibarra in a three-time world championship showdown Saturday night in San Antonio. Luke G. Williams previews the action…
Now 37, Jessica McCaskill (11-2, 4 KOs) is one of those boxers whose current profile is a bit less than the sum of its parts.
Fascinating, entertaining, and possessing a gripping storyline that has seen her rise from homelessness to world championship, the Chicago-based undisputed women’s weight champion is still following. Chasing super fights will make her the main star.
True, McCaskill has twice beaten longtime weight queen Cecilia Braekhus in 2020 and 2021, but the Colombian-born Norwegian is a boxer that – outside of her adopted country – has never been’ surpassing’ the way Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano did when they dueled earlier this year at Madison Square Garden, or the way Claressa Shields and Savannah Marshall look likely to do when they hope to fight later this year. .
Since beating Braekhus in a rematch in March 2021, McCaskill has been searching in vain for a suitable opponent – clashes with undisputed lightweight champion Katie Taylor or world champion athlete Katie Taylor. Unified lightweight rival Chantelle Cameron didn’t even materialize.
Her last appearance was in December, McCaskill dominates Kandi Wyatt excelled on her way to victory in the seventh round, which didn’t help improve her profile or resume.
Now, in Mexican, 32-year-old Alma Ibarra (10-1, 5 KOs), McCaskill faces a more brilliant foe, in a fight she was supposed to win, but that’s carries a danger.
Ibarra – like McCaskill – won against Wyatt and her only professional comeback came in 2019 against Raquel ‘Pretty Beast’ Miller. Ibarra is also one of the rare boxers in the world boxing scene whose back story is even more compelling and engaging than McCaskill’s, she survived a kidnapping challenge in 2020 that made her lost the chance to fight in the challenges of the Mexican Olympics. She is also a single mother with a son, Matthias, who has hemophilia.
Ibarra has long been fighting for a world title and this hunger, as well as admiration, makes her dangerous. Furthermore, she will have the height and advantage over McCaskill, and will certainly be hoping that this week’s broad talk about the possible McCaskill-Cameron matchup later in the year is a sign of her growing concern. lack of focus on the champion’s part.
McCaskill also spoke before this bout about the fact that we’ll see improved moves, mass, and boxing skills from her in this bout. At this stage in her career, a complete change in her style would be equally surprising – after all, her pressure fighting style has served her extremely well. good so far, and tinkering with a winning strategy formula is a dangerous game.
However, the exact reality is that McCaskill is under so much at stake so I think she’s going to win. The American is a formidable opponent who never cuts his training corners and is completely devoted to boxing. She can be crude in the ring at times, but her tenacity is paramount and it will certainly take a more skilled and experienced foe than Ibarra to topple her from the throne. 147 lbs.
The confident pick, therefore, is for McCaskill to take a fairly comfortable score – in the seven-to-three zone – after a show game from an inspired but defeated Ibarra.
