Skye Nicolson takes on Raven Chapman in a “better fight” than Amanda Serrano

Skye Nicolson's next fight against Raven Chapman is scheduled for October 12 at the Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. The Australian featherweight will bring her WBC middleweight belt into the ring. The fight will be headlined on the card with Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol.

The undefeated Nicolson (11-0, 1 KO) is stepping into the ring for the third time this year and defending her title for the second time. After her last fight against Dyana Vargas in July, the 29-year-old left-hander said she was no longer seeking a fight against Amanda Serrano (46-2-1, 30 KO). At the press conference for her next title defense against Chapman, the Meadowbrook, Queensland native said the upcoming fight was a “better fight” than the one against the seventh-weight world champion from Puerto Rico.

“I think this is a better fight than I had against [Amanda] Serrano, anyway,” said Skye Nicolson. “I have a lot of respect for Raven. I think we're going to see a great clash of styles and I'm very, very honored by this opportunity.”

“I'm prepared for anything and everything tonight. I've revamped this camp and whatever Raven brings, we have an answer for it.”

Unbeaten Raven Chapman (9-0, 2 KOs) will step through the ropes for the second time in 2024 and make her first attempt to move to the top of the division. The 30-year-old British challenger said she was excited to take part in the first women's contest of the Riyadh Season.

“I'm just excited to get women on that big stage and put on a performance,” said Raven Chapman. “There aren't many things that make history anymore. But to still be able to be a part of something that goes down in the history books is really humbling and a big reason why I do this as a fighter and as a woman in boxing. And I hope I make it clear that it doesn't matter what gender you are, male or female, you should get the opportunities you deserve.”

The main event is a world championship fight for the undisputed light heavyweight title. The fight pits unified WBC, WBO and IBF world champion Artur Beterbiev (20-0, 20 KOs) against WBA titleholder Dmitry Bivol (23-0, 12 KOs).

Other fights scheduled on the card include two-time Australian IBF cruiserweight world champion Jai Opetaia (25-0, 19 KOs) defending his belt against Jack Massey (22-2, 12 KOs) of Great Britain, while Fabio Wardley (17-0-1, 16 KOs) defends his British heavyweight title against Frazer Clarke (8-0-1, 6 KOs).

Also on the program is a middleweight fight between Britain's Chris Eubank Jr. (33-3, 24 KOs) and Poland's Kamil Szeremeta (25-2-2, 8 KOs). In addition, Ben Whittaker (8-0, 5 KOs) and Liam Cameron (23-6, 10 KOs) will meet in an all-British light heavyweight showdown. In addition, Mohammed Alakel from Saudi Arabia will make his professional boxing debut in the lightweight division against Colombian Jesus Gonzalez (3-2).