New Zealander Mea Motu has lost her IBO world super bantamweight title to English rival Ellie Scotney this morning in a bruising encounter that went the full 10 rounds.
Motu, hoping to unify the division and relieve Scotney of her IBF and WBO titles, lost the fight in Nottingham by unanimous decision.
All three judges from Australia, Poland and England awarded the fight to Scotney 99-91.
Scotney, who suffered a cut near her left eye near the end of the first round from an accidental head clash, ultimately outboxed Motu but the fight appeared closer than what the judges saw.
Motu, 35, was consistently the more aggressive fighter and could have shaded the first, third and fourth rounds, with the final two also very close.
However, there is little doubt that Scotney, who moves to 10-0 as a professional, deserved the victory for her better footwork, punch variety and head movement.
It was a credit, too, to the work of Scotney's corner to stem the bleeding above her eye. As the cut was from a head clash, had the fight been stopped as a result of that before the fourth round, the fight would have been ruled a no contest.
The bout had already been delayed from last October due to an injury suffered by Scotney in training.
Motu, who is now 20-1 as a professional, smiled in the ring afterwards and embraced her opponent at the final bell, saying: “It was a pleasure to share the ring with you.”
Afterwards, Scotney told the DAZN broadcast: “She was a tough girl, I have so much respect for her.
“She was very vocal [in the build up] and her character matched how she boxed.”
Motu’s bravery and aggression did not go unnoticed by the commentary team, including by former cruiserweight world champion Tony Bellew, who said: “Motu is a problem for anyone in that division. She does not stop.”
Motu was attempting to become the first New Zealand boxer to become a unified world champion.
For Scotney, a move up weight classes to featherweight is likely, with her eyes set on Australian world WBC featherweight champion Skye Nicholson, a woman who has a big following in the United Kingdom who, like Scotney, is promoted by Eddie Hearn.
Motu had her success at the start and finish of the fight and was particularly effective when scoring to the body, but the middle was all Scotney, who consistently found a home for her right hand, whether it was an uppercut or right cross.
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