Michelle Sutcliffe (born 3 February 1967) is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

female boxer Although women have participated in boxing for almost as long as the sport has existed, female fights have been effectively outlawed for most of boxing's history until recently, with athletic commissioners refusing to sanction or issue licenses ...

who competed in the

Light Flyweight Light flyweight, also known as junior flyweight or super strawweight, is a weight class in boxing. Professional boxing The weight limit at light flyweight in professional boxing is 108 pounds (49 kilograms). When New York legalized boxing in 1920 ...

division. On 27 February 2000 she became the first Leeds-based boxer, professionally licensed under the

British Boxing Board of Control The British Boxing Board of Control (BBBofC) is the governing body of professional boxing in the United Kingdom. History The British Boxing Board of Control was formed in 1929 from the old National Sporting Club and is headquartered in Cardiff. ...

(BBBofC), to become a world professional boxing champion. In 1999 she was awarded the BBC's sportswoman of the year. Michelle was the second woman to be granted a professional boxers license by the BBBofC the first woman being

Jane Couch Jane Couch, (born 14 August 1968) is a British former professional boxer who competed from 1994 to 2007. She became the first licensed female boxer in the United Kingdom in 1998, and won numerous world titles. Couch has since become a boxing ...

. Michelle also practised

Kickboxing Kickboxing is a combat sports, combat sport focused on kicking and punch (strike), punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is pract ...

and the

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; a ...

sport of

Muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterised ...

Professional career

Sutcliffe's professional

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...

career began on November 2, 1996 with her first world title try, as she challenged

Regina Halmich Regina Halmich (born 22 November 1976) is a German boxer. She is among the most successful female boxers of all time and helped popularise female boxing in Europe. Amateur career Halmich was German champion in kickboxing as an amateur in 1992, ...

for the

WIBF The Women's International Boxing Federation (WIBF) is one of the more recognized world championship fight sanctioning organizations in women's boxing. Founded in March 1989, it is based in Miami, Florida, and presided over by Barbara Buttrick. The ...

's world Flyweight title, despite having never previously taken part in competition on this level; she ultimately lost in a second-round

technical knockout A knockout (abbreviated to KO or K.O.) is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, muay thai, mixed martial arts, karate, some forms of taekwondo and other sports involving striking, a ...

. On June 24, 1998, Sutcliffe met

Para Draine Para Draine (born December 28, 1972) is an American female boxer who has been a world champion two times. She is a former 112 pounds and current 115 pound champion. Draine stands 5 feet eight inches (68 inches) tall, making her relatively t ...

Atlantic City Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, Boardwalk (entertainment district), boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020 United States censu ...

for her second bout, losing by technical knockout in round five. Her first win came against Diane Berry on June 28 of that year, when she defeated Berry by decision in five rounds back home in England. On February 12, 1999, she lost to Sengul Ozokcu by a six-round decision in

Denmark ) , song = ( en, "King Christian stood by the lofty mast") , song_type = National and royal anthem , image_map = EU-Denmark.svg , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Danish Realm, Kingdom of Denmark ...

, following that defeat with two wins in a row. Sutcliffe then fought

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct language ...

champion Veerle Braspennings for the vacant Intercontinental WIBF title at the Armouries in Leeds, winning by technical knockout in round 7. On Sunday 26 September 1999 Sutcliffe won the World

International Boxing Federation The International Boxing Federation (IBF) is one of four major organizations recognized by the International Boxing Hall of Fame (IBHOF) which sanctions professional boxing bouts, alongside the World Boxing Association (WBA), World Boxing Counci ...

flyweight title. The match was held at the Royal Armouries museum in Leeds. It was between Michelle Sutcliffe and Veerle Braspenningx who Sutcliffe beat after 7 rounds. Sutcliffe's ascent to boxing fame culminated with a glorious bout against Francesca Lupo at the Leeds Town Hall on February 27, 2000; entering the match, Lupo was the far more experienced fighter, having recently become the Italian champion and World Number One for the vacant WBF (World Boxing Federation) World Title flyweight crown. Sutcliffe was declared the victor by unanimous decision after ten rounds, making history as the first

Leeds Leeds () is a city and the administrative centre of the City of Leeds district in West Yorkshire, England. It is built around the River Aire and is in the eastern foothills of the Pennines. It is also the third-largest settlement (by populati ...

-based professionally licensed boxer under the BBBofC to become a World professional boxing champion. On October 7, 2000, Michelle and Halmich were rematched in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

, with the WIBF's world Flyweight championship on the line once again. Sutcliffe entered the match with the aim of making a bold statement, and while the fight proved much more competitive than their first match, Sutcliffe ultimately lost a very close ten-round decision on points. Her next fight, against

Kim Messer Kim or KIM may refer to: Names * Kim (given name) * Kim (surname) ** Kim (Korean surname) *** Kim family (disambiguation), several dynasties **** Kim family (North Korea), the rulers of North Korea since Kim Il-sung in 1948 ** Kim, Vietnamese fo ...

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, also ended in a loss by points decision in ten rounds. Sutcliffe followed these losses by winning the IFBA World Title crown at the Irish Center in Leeds on May 17, 2001, knocking out Bulgarian champion Maria Ivanova in round 5. After the knockout win, Sutcliffe moved up one weight division and challenged

Daisy Lang Daisy Lang (born 4 April 1972) is a former professional boxer who competed from 1996 to 2004. She is a former three division world champion and was the first Bulgarian woman to capture a world title, having held the WIBF super-flyweight, bantam ...

for Lang's WIBF World Jr. bantamweight title on October 29, 2001 in

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. Sutcliffe lost in a seven-round

technical decision A technical decision is a term used in boxing when a fight has to be stopped because of a headbutt. In boxing fights, referees have to pay deep attention to the action going on between the fighters, especially when the two combatants are fightin ...

when the fight's referee dictated that a cut suffered by Lang had been produced by a headbutt; the bout's result proved to be controversial, as many ringside and

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

viewers thought they had seen a right-hand punch by Sutcliffe causing Lang's cut. Following the contentious loss, Sutcliffe retired from professional boxing as a three-time World champion. Reflecting on her career, Sutcliffe stated: Her record stands at 7 wins and 5 losses, with 2 knockout wins.

Post-professional career

Michelle now teaches classes and 1-2-1 sessions at Tigers Gym in

Meanwood Meanwood is a suburb and former village in north-west Leeds, West Yorkshire, England. The area sits in the Moortown ward of Leeds City Council and Leeds North East parliamentary constituency. Origins and history The name Meanwood goes back t ...

, Leeds.

Legacy

Sutcliffe and

have helped to increase the popularity of women's boxing in

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

. Sutcliffe is one of the most famous female fighters to come from England.

Professional boxing record

References

External links

Michelle Sutcliffe at Tiger's Gym
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sutcliffe, Michelle 1967 births Living people English Muay Thai practitioners Female Muay Thai practitioners English female kickboxers English women boxers