Skye Nicolson, once again, put on an absolute boxing masterclass to take home a unanimous decision win over Dyana Vargas at the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia. Despite that, an unforgiving boxing world seems to be divided by her shutout performance for her first title defense.
Even though Vargas was tough, she couldn’t catch the agile Aussie, resulting in the judges scoring the bout 100-90 for Nicolson. But perhaps Nicolson couldn’t completely win over the fans because of her lack of punching power, which led the fight to go the distance.
Smirks and Strikes: Skye Nicolson Dominates Vargas
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Nicolson did have Vargas in trouble in the fifth round after landing a clean overhand left, but the Dominican Republic resident refused to go down. By the tenth round, Nicolson had opened up a cut over Vargas’ left eye, as she smiled at her opponent’s face while mocking her with a chicken gesture.
Skye Nicolson lands clean to end the 5th round 👀#EnnisAvanesyan | Tonight | Live on DAZN pic.twitter.com/GUnuosxRA0
— DAZN Boxing (@DAZNBoxing) July 14, 2024
Vargas, who fought outside of her native country for the first time, kept putting up a fight till the final bell, but alas, it wasn’t her day. In the aftermath, DAZN Boxing shared the update on X, which attracted opinions from fans about Nicolson’s lopsided boxing match. Spoiler Alert: Shakur Stevenson was roped in.
Nicolson’s success met with a grim reality check
What’s your perspective on:
Skye Nicolson fights better than Shakur—agree or disagree?
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Having dominated her opponent, Nicolson might not have expected friction with the fans, but here they are. One user outright labeled the match boring, claiming paying $100 plus for the tickets wasn’t worth it. Nicolson is known for her highly defensive and technical style of boxing, which has been evident in her previous fights as well—she did the exact same this time as well.
Boring fight, imagine paying $100+ for a seat to wash a game of Tag
— Just Hxpz (@JustHxpz) July 14, 2024
Meanwhile, this user roped in Shakur Stevenson to take a dig at him while praising Nicolson by suggesting Nicolson did better than Stevenson. ‘Sugar’ even has that defensive boxing style, which has garnered a lot of hate in recent times, so the comment was slight at Stevenson for that.
She fights better than Shakur 😅
— SpongeBobs Mom (@MackeyshaWaller) July 14, 2024
Another user highlighted how Nicolson wasn’t willing to give away any points by getting hit, something often seen in amateurs. Given the fact that it was Nicolson’s 11th professional fight, it does make sense.
That amateur style is still there, so defensive not trying to get touched at all 😂
— Alexander JR✨… (@Nemesis__VII) July 14, 2024
Someone else pointed out that Nicolson was a decent fighter, but isn’t worth paying PPV money. However, if she gets the fight against Amanda Serrano, it will decently be a pay-per-view bonanza.
She decent but she ain’t no P4P type fighter
— BoxingTakeout 🥡 (@boxing_takeout) July 14, 2024
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One user came in to support Nicolson, claiming Nicolson absolutely outclasses her opponent by using boxing’s oldest rule—hit and don’t get hit. Most fans want to see action rather than the more technical side of boxing, which creates a conflict when fighters like Nicolson get on the squared circle.
She just absolutely outclassed her opponent and y’all are complaining lol go watch something else apparently y’all don’t understand boxing, hit and don’t get hit
— Reef Gang (@fullchubbbb) July 14, 2024
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Alright, folks, it was yet another successful trip to the ring for Skye Nicolson. But she has failed to win over all the fans through her performance. If she wants the fight against Serrano to happen, Nicolson might have to come out from behind her 1-2, and engage in a brawl.
What do you think of the fight? Let us know in the comments below.
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Skye Nicolson fights better than Shakur—agree or disagree?