Ellie Scotney Headlines New Wave of MVP Signings and Will Face Yamileth Mercado
IBF and WBO super-bantamweight world champion Ellie Scotney leads the latest addition of female boxers to Most Valuable Promotions (MVP), Jake Paul’s promoter. Scotney will face WBC champion Yamileth Mercado on the undercard of the highly anticipated trilogy between Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano on July 11 in New York.
The official announcement was made by the promoter itself this Wednesday, marking a milestone in the growth of its women’s division.
Joining Scotney in this new group of female talents are IBF bantamweight champion Shurretta Metcalf, WBA interim featherweight champion Jennifer Miranda, and the undefeated Elizabeth Oshoba. Metcalf will play a prominent role in the Taylor-Serrano 3 prelims, facing her MVP stablemate and unified female bantamweight champion Dina Thorslund. It was recently announced that Miranda will contest the co-main event against undisputed female super featherweight champion Alycia Baumgardner.
The addition of Scotney reinforces MVP’s commitment to women’s boxing, adding another prominent figure to its already impressive roster of female boxers.
“Taylor vs. Serrano 3 headlines an unprecedented card of world title fights, with every fight on our main card being for an undisputed or unified women’s world championship. This is the most comprehensive women’s boxing card in history, bringing together six of the top fifteen pound-for-pound female boxers, including four of the top ten on Boxrec”
Jake Paul and Nakisa Bidarian, co-founders of MVP
Ellie Scotney, with a professional record of 10-0, debuted in October 2020 after a distinguished amateur career. In June 2023, in her seventh professional fight, she conquered her first title by defeating Cherneka Johnson by unanimous decision, obtaining the IBF super-bantamweight championship. Subsequently, in April 2024, she added the WBO title to her record after defeating Ségolène Lefebvre.
“What MVP is doing for women’s boxing is changing the game, and I’m proud to be a part of it. Fighting on the main card of Taylor vs. Serrano 3 at Madison Square Garden, live on Netflix, in another unification fight, is a major moment in my career, but I know I’m ready. Yamileth Mercado might be the longest-reigning champion in our weight right now, but on July 11th I will prove why I am number one at 122 pounds and take another step towards becoming the undisputed champion.”
Ellie Scotney
Yamileth Mercado, originally from Ciudad Cuauhtémoc, Mexico, has been the WBC super bantamweight champion since 2019, when she avenged her split decision loss to Fatuma Zarika. She has successfully defended her title eight times, with her only loss in this period against Serrano, when she unsuccessfully attempted to become a two-division champion by moving up to featherweight in 2021. She has not lost at 122 pounds in almost seven years.
Completing the Taylor-Serrano 3 fight card, Canadian Tamm Thibeault (2-0) will compete under the same rules as men, facing Mary Casamassa in a middleweight fight scheduled for eight rounds of three minutes each.
