Boxing: Hannah Rankin’s World Title Defence Moved to the Hydro
WBA and IBO female super-welterweight champion Hannah Rankin has had her scheduled world title defence for May moved from the Braehead Arena to Glasgow’s premier venue- the OVO Hydro. Tickets for the Scottish star’s fight were in “very high demand”. and there were projections for a sell-out crowd at the Braehead Arena.
This will be the first time that a female boxer has headlined the arena. Rankin has come a long way from fighting at Leisure Centre’s. This just shows the growth of female boxing not only in Scotland, but in the UK as a whole.
Rankin said her headline fight at the Hydro is “a massive step forward for women’s boxing”. The Scot won the vacant WBA and IBO super-welterweight world titles in her last fight against experienced Swede, Maria Lindberg, at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London last November.
Rankin’s resume speaks for itself, with the fighter challenging some of the biggest names in the sport, including fellow Brit, Savannah Marshall, and former undisputed 154lb champion and pound for pound star, Claressa Shields.
A win in her first title defence in May could see the Luss-born fighter go up against WBO world champion and fellow Brit, Natasha Jonas, in a blockbuster showdown.