Alycia Baumgardner Is Moving Up for Another World Title

Alycia Baumgardner isn’t easing her way into the lightweight division. Most Valuable Promotions announced Tuesday that Baumgardner will move up to 135 pounds and challenge undefeated IBF lightweight champion Elif Nur Turhan on November 8 at College Park Center in Arlington, Texas. If Baumgardner wins, the former undisputed junior-lightweight champion will become a world champion in a second weight class.

The matchup is especially interesting because Baumgardner isn’t taking a tune-up before challenging Turhan. The Turkish champion enters unbeaten at 14-0 and has developed a reputation for power and pressure, meaning this isn’t simply a showcase designed to introduce Baumgardner to a new division. It’s an immediate world-title gamble. The November 8 MVP card will feature four championship fights, giving women’s boxing another major event built entirely around high-level title bouts.

For Baumgardner, this could open the door to even bigger fights at lightweight if she succeeds. Caroline Dubois is already established in the division, and the growing number of champions and recognizable names at 135 creates plenty of possibilities. But first Baumgardner has to prove that the speed, skill and power that made her elite at 130 travel with her. She isn’t testing the water. She’s jumping directly into the deep end.