On Friday, December 14, 2018, 2016 United States Olympian and NABF titleholder Mikaela Mayer (9-0, 4 KOs) went to work against Calista Silgado (17-11-3, 12 KOs) on the undercard of the Gilberto Ramirez vs. Jesse Hart rematch from Corpus Christi, Texas.
The bout was scheduled for eight, two-minute rounds and streamed live on ESPN+.
Mayer has been a busy lady in 2018, and during fight week she gave credit to her promotional team for moving her along at the right pace.
“It definitely exceeded my expectations and my team’s,” said Mayer. “Top Rank has done a great job of moving me and I think given me the right fights, too, kind of just testing my skills and seeing where I’m at.”
From the first bell, the unbeaten Top Rank star looked to impose her will on the more experienced professional, Silgado. Mayer was the stalker throughout the bout as she loomed large over the Colombian veteran.
Mayer worked patiently behind a stiff jab early on until Round 3, where she unloaded solid blows almost exclusively to the body of Silgado. The fourth round was brutal as both women unleashed hellacious shots, but again it was Mayer that got the best of the exchanges.
Mayer was quicker to the draw throughout the fight and in Round 4 it really showed as she continually beat Silgado to the punch.
Silgado, who has been in with good competition including Shelly Vincent, Amanda Serrano and Cindy Serrano, was a durable opponent but she began to wear down in the second half of the bout after absorbing so many hard body shots.
By Round 7 Mayer was fully in her element, working her feints, jabs and setting up solid hooks to Silgado’s body. By the end of the round Silgado was on wobbly legs, but to her credit she was able to survive the distance.
Mayer dominated the fight, and as Terence Crawford‘s trainer Brian “BoMac” McIntyre stated from ringside it was a great learning experience for the undefeated up and comer.
By unanimous decision @MikaelaMayer1 remains the NABF super featherweight champion! 💥 #RamirezHart2 pic.twitter.com/UsqujdBP01
— Top Rank Boxing (@trboxing) December 15, 2018
The victory marked Mayer’s sixth of 2018, and in 2019 she will be shooting for a world title shot.
The final scores were 80-72 across the board, all for Mayer who improved to 9-0, 4 KOs.
