Mikaela Mayer will remain on the same network that has featured nearly her entire career.
The only change is in representation.
The three-division champ and high-ranking pound-for-pound talent became the latest fighter to join the ever-growing roster of Most Valuable Promotions (MVP), the company announced Friday. Mayer’s pivotal decision comes just as the promotional outfit announced a long-term deal with ESPN, which has housed the majority of her 24 pro bouts.
“I’m thrilled to join Most Valuable Promotions as we continue breaking barriers and elevating women’s boxing to new heights,” said Mayer. “I’ve always wanted the biggest and best fights, and MVP’s premier roster of women champions creates incredible opportunities to make those matchups happen.
“I’m looking forward to showcasing my skills on some of the biggest platforms in the sport and working with a passionate, innovative team that believes in the continued growth of women’s boxing.”
A fight date was not attached to the signing, though MVP has three shows coming up in the next two months. The group has launched its MVPw series, which debuts April 5 in London, with April 17 and May 30 shows taking place stateside.
Mayer, 22-2 (5 KOs) has won major titles in three weight divisions and currently holds belts at 147lbs (WBO) and 154lbs (WBA, WBC). She previously held the IBF and WBO titles at 130lbs, a run that included her epic November 2021 unification clash with Maiva Hamadouche, which was hailed by BoxingScene as the 2021 Fight of the Year.
Her two-year stay as a 130lbs titlist ended in a disputed defeat to Alycia Baumgardner in their October 2022 three-belt unification clash in London. It marked her final fight at the weight, moving up three times in as many bouts before settling for good at 147lbs.
A bid to become a two-division champ saw Mayer fall just short against Natasha Jonas, again in a decision that could’ve gone either way in their terrific January 2024 affair in Liverpool for Jonas’s IBF 147lbs title. Mayer finally hit paydirt in a September 2024 victory over Sandy Ryan to lift the WBO welterweight belt, which she defended in a more convincing win over Ryan in their March 2025 rematch.
All of the abovementioned bouts aired live on ESPN or its affiliated streaming platform, as part of a long-term deal with Top Rank which ran from August 2017 through last July. Mayer signed with Top Rank in 2017, less than a year after representing the U.S. in the 2016 Rio Olympics.
Given the absence of a network deal for Top Rank since last summer, Mayer was forced to hit the road – literally and from a promotional perspective. She traveled to Montreal for her clash with 154lbs titlist Mary Spencer, whom Mayer soundly outpointed in her divisional debut to claim the WBA, WBC and WBO belts at the weight.
A hard decision was made to part with the WBO 154lbs title, as the sanctioning body’s rules state you can’t hold its belt in two separate weight divisions.
The decision to keep the WBO 147lbs strap ties to unfinished business – a desired showdown with unified champ Lauren Price who holds the rest of the welterweight hardware.
Recently, Mayer was also linked to a potential superfight with 2016 Olympic teammate and multi-divisional champ Claressa Shields.
Both options are very much on the table (the Shields fight under the right circumstances, particularly a fair catchweight). As far as her new team is concerned, the sky’s the limit.
“Mikaela is one of the most accomplished fighters in women’s boxing and a proven champion across multiple weight classes,” Paul and Bidarian said in a joint MVP statement. “She has competed on the sport’s biggest stages, faced the best fighters in the world, and continues to push the sport forward.
“We’re proud to welcome Mikaela to MVP and look forward to building the next chapter of her career together.”
