Amanda Serrano
Amanda Serrano is a Puerto Rican professional boxer and mixed martial artist. As a boxer, she is the unified featherweight world champion, having held the WBO title since 2019, IBO title since 2021 and the WBA title since 2023. She held the IBF title between 2022 and 2024 and the WBC title between 2021 and 2023. She is the first undisputed world champion, male or female, of the four-belt era from Puerto Rico, accomplishing this feat in 2023 at featherweight. She is the only Puerto Rican, male or female, to win world titles in more than four weight classes, and holds the Guinness World Record for the most boxing world championships won in different weight-classes by a female, having held 9 major world titles across seven different weight classes.
Serrano has been recognized as Women Boxing Archive Network Fighter of the Year five times. She was also named Female Boxer of the Year three times by the WBO, an entity that granted her the first "Super World Championship" awarded to a woman. In June 2019, she was named Athlete of the Year by the Puerto Rican Day Parade committee, and in December 2019, she was named Ring 8 New York's Fighter of the Decade. She was additionally named Female Fighter of the Year by the Boxing Writers Association of America in 2021 and 2023.
As of December 2025, Serrano is ranked as the world's best active female featherweight by The Ring and BoxRec, and the third best active female, pound for pound, by ESPN and second by The Ring. She is signed to Jake Paul's boxing promotion Most Valuable Promotions after signing a lifetime deal with the company in March 2025.
Early life
Serrano was born in the municipality of Carolina, where her sister Cindy was also born. Her grandparents were also born in the municipality of Carolina. When she was young, the family moved to New York and joined the large Puerto Rican diaspora there. Surrounded by this community, she grew up in an oasis of Puerto Rican culture in which traditional food and salsa music were predominant. Her upbringing is reflected in the manner in which she speaks Spanish, in a dialect with a distinct accent often attributed to that population The family lived in Brooklyn, where she continued to live well into adulthood. During her youth she was an active child, with a distinct passion for swimming. After her older sister Cindy began boxing training intending to lose weight by attending the gym of her husband Jordan Maldonado, the 12-year old Serrano accompanied her there. She continued frequenting the facility and eventually got her first job there.Initially Serrano was not as interested in the sport, not even attending a family event to watch the Oscar De La Hoya vs. Félix Trinidad fight, but she was an avid follower of Cindy's career and developed a passion for it as she grew older. When she graduated from Bushwick High School at the age of 17, she decided to begin training as a method to buy things and bond with her sister Cindy. Her father supported her decision, but her mother was hesitant until she began earning success and saw it as a way for the elder sister to retire after having her second child. Cindy, knowing that she had already been frustrated during a previous sparring session against a boy, intended to dissuade her by stepping into the ring but the younger sister proved that she could defend herself competently. Admittedly shy, Serrano choose to continue in Maldonado's small gym in Queens with him as trainer, so that the flow of people was controlled and she could focus on her training.
Amateur career
Serrano's amateur career was brief and concluded with a record of only 9–1, but she won the Staten Island amateur championship in 2008. From there she competed in the featherweight division of the New York Daily News Golden Gloves, where she defeated Glenyss Puentevella by referee stopping contest in the semifinal and decisioned USA Boxing's national champion Jody-Ann Weller in the final. Serrano is managed and trained by noted female American professional boxing trainer Jordan Maldonado of New York City. Serrano is Boxing 360's first world champion.Professional boxing career
Early career
On June 11, 2011, Serrano defeated Jennifer Scott to capture the vacant WBC–NABF featherweight title. The bout was scheduled for 8 rounds, but the match was cut quick as Serrano knocked out Scott in 1:04 of round one.Super featherweight
Serrano was in line to face Fatuma Zarika for the vacant WBC super featherweight title, however, Zarika returned to her native Kenya due to an emergency, and was unable to return due to visa problems. On September 10, 2011, Serrano defeated WIBF Inter-Continental lightweight champion Kimberly Connor via second-round technical-knockout, for the vacant IBF super featherweight title.Serrano vs. Wallberg
Her next fight took place on April 27, 2012, at the Cloetta Center, in Linköping, Sweden against undefeated WBC champion Frida Wallberg. The World Boxing Council—against mandatory rules—allowed the bout to be contested with 10 ounce gloves instead of the mandatory 8 ounce for that division.Serrano came up short losing a controversial unanimous decision to Wallberg. All three judges' scorecards were in favour of Wallberg with Gudjon Vilhelm scoring it 93–98, Venciclav Nikolov scoring it 93–97, and Franco Ciminale scoring it 94–96.
Quest for multi-division supremacy
Her sixth-round knockout win over Maria Maderna for the WBO lightweight title was held at the Argentine Boxing Federation Stadium. Maderna was going for her fourth title defense, but Serrano dominated the fight with her speed and power.She next faced the former WBC super featherweight champion Olivia Gerula at the BB King Blues Club & Grill in New York City, New York. Serrano stated in a pre-fight interview that she wanted the winner of Matthysse vs. Mrdjenovich, as she expressed her desire to unify all four featherweight title. Serrano defeated Olivia Gerula via technical-knockout in the first round to capture the vacant WBO featherweight title. Serrano then successfully defended her featherweight title by TKO against Calixta Silgado in Brooklyn.
On October 18, 2016, Serrano defeated Alexandra Lazar in the fifth round to capture the vacant WBO junior featherweight title. Already a three division champion, she moved back down to the junior featherweight limit to tie Miguel Cotto's record and become only the second Puerto Rican boxer, male or female, to win world titles in four weight classes.
Serrano vs. Santana I
In 2017, fighting on the Shawn Porter vs. Andre Berto undercard, Serrano dominated Dahiana Santana en route to an eighth-round KO victory to win the vacant WBO bantamweight belt, which made her the first female fighter in boxing history to win world titles in five weight divisions.Serrano vs. Reynoso
On September 8, 2018, the Brooklyn-based hitter moved up an unprecedented five weight classes to defeat Yamilia Esther Reynoso via tenth round unanimous decision, and captured the WBO light welterweight.Serrano vs. Voraberger
On January 18, 2019, Serrano defeated Eva Voraberger in the first round to capture the vacant WBO super flyweight title. In doing so she became only the second male or female to capture a major title in seven weight classes after Manny Pacquiao.Featherweight
Serrano vs. Hardy I
On September 13, 2019, Serrano defeated undefeated Heather Hardy, to capture the interim WBC and WBO featherweight title. The Brooklyn native dominated the 10 round bout with a score of 98–91, 98–91 98–92.On February 4, 2021, Serrano was promoted to full WBC featherweight champion. The move came following a breakdown in talks regarding a targeted showdown with Edmonton's Jelena Mrdjenovich.
Serrano vs. Bermudez
On March 25, 2021, Serrano KO'd Daniela Bermudez with a body punch in round nine at Plaza del Quinto Centenario, San Juan, Puerto Rico. Serrano retained her WBC and WBO featherweight titles. Heading into the bout, Serrano and Bermudez were ranked inside The RingLightweight
Serrano vs. Taylor
The first women's boxing match to headline Madison Square Garden, described as the 'biggest women's fight of all time', was held on April 30, 2022, between Katie Taylor and Serrano, with Taylor's undisputed lightweight titles on the line. Taylor defeated Serrano by split decision in what was named Fight of the Year by Sports Illustrated.On February 5, 2023, it was announced that the rematch between Taylor and Serrano would take place on May 20 in Dublin, Ireland, for the undisputed lightweight championship of the world. However, on February 28, Serrano withdrew due to an injury she had sustained during training camp and Taylor fought undisputed light-welterweight champion Chantelle Cameron instead.