Femke Hermans Explained

Femke Hermans
Weight:
Height:5 ft 8 in
Nationality:Belgian
Birth Date:1990 2, df=yes
Style:Orthodox
Boxrec:738579
Total:22
Wins:18
Ko:7
Losses:4

Femke Hermans (pronounced as /nl/) is a Belgian professional boxer who is the current IBF and IBO female super-welterweight World champion. She also held the WBO female super-middleweight title in 2018, becoming the second Belgian woman to hold a major world championship.

Professional career

Hermans made her professional debut on 23 January 2016, scoring a six-round unanimous decision (UD) victory against Galina Gyumliyska at the Sportloods Waarborre in Asse, Belgium.[1]

After a technical knockout (TKO) victory against Vladislava Lopuhova in June,[2] Hermans defeated Elene Sikmashvili via second-round knockout (KO) on 8 October, capturing the inaugural Belgian and vacant BeNeLux female super-middleweight titles in Middelkerke, Belgium.[3]

In her next fight she faced Borislava Goranova for the WBF International female super-middleweight title on 21 January 2017, at the Sportloods Waarborre. Hermans captured the title via eight-round UD, with two judges scoring the bout 80–72 and the third judge scored it 79–73.[4]

Two fights later she challenged for her first world title, facing Alicia Napoleon for the vacant WBA female super-middleweight title on 3 March 2018, at the Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. The bout was televised live on Showtime as part of the undercard for Deontay Wilder vs. Luis Ortiz. Hermans suffered the first defeat of her career, losing via UD with the judges' scorecards reading 99–91, 98–92 and 98–92.[5]

She made a second attempt at a world title in her next fight, facing Nikki Adler for the vacant WBO female super-middleweight title on 12 May 2018, at the Eisstadion in Augsburg, Germany. Hermans defeated Adler via UD to become the second Belgian woman (after Delfine Persoon) to win a major world title. One judge scored the bout 99–91 and the other two scored it 97–93.[6]

After two UD victories in non-title fights, Hermans moved down a weight class to challenge Claressa Shields for the unified WBA, WBC, and IBF female middleweight titles on 8 December 2018, at the StubHub Center in Carson, California. In an event that served as HBO's last televised boxing show, Hermans suffered the second defeat of her career, losing via UD over ten rounds, with all three judges scoring the bout 100–90.[7]

She moved back up to super-middleweight in her next fight, facing Elin Cederroos for the vacant IBF female title on 22 March 2019, at the Belleheide Center in Roosdaal, Belgium. Hermans suffered her second consecutive defeat, and the third of her career, losing via majority decision (MD) with two judges scoring the bout 96–94 in favour of Cederroos while the third judge scored it even at 95–95.[8]

Following a TKO victory in a rematch with Borislava Goranova in October 2020,[9] Hermans faced Luiza Davydova for the inaugural European female middleweight title on 5 December 2020, at the Fight Off Training Center in Wavre, Belgium. Hermans defeated Goranova via UD, with all three judges scoring the bout 98–92.[10]

Hermans challenged Savannah Marshall for the WBO female middleweight World title on 2 April 2022 but lost the contest in Newcastle, England, when she was knocked out in round three.[11]

Switching to super-welterweight, she claimed the vacant IBO title with a win over the previously unbeaten Mary Spencer by unanimous decision in Shawnigan, Quebec, Canada, on 16 December 2022.[12]

Hermans made an emphatic first defense of her title on 17 June 2023 when her challenger, Maria Lindberg, retired at the end of the first-round of their fight in Roosdaal, Belgium, having been knocked to the canvas just before the bell.[13]

She put her belt on the line in a rematch against Spencer on 11 October 2023, in Montreal, Canada, with the vacant IBF female super-welterweight World title also up for grabs. Once again Hermans got the victory, this time by majority decision.[14]

Professional boxing record

ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes
22Win18–4Ester KonecnaUD613 Jan 2024
21Win17-4Mary SpencerMD1011 Oct 2023
20Win16–4Maria Lindberg1 (10), 17 Jun 2023
19Win15–4Katarina VisticaKO5 (8), 11 Mar 2023
18Win14–4Mary SpencerUD1016 Dec 2022
17Win13–4Bojana LibiszewskaUD625 Jun 2022
16Loss12–4Savannah MarshallKO3 (10), 2 Apr 2022
15Win12–3Lili JumaliKO3 (6), 17 Jul 2021
14Win11–3Luiza DavydovaUD105 Dec 2020
13Win10–3Borislava GoranovaTKO3 (6), 9 Oct 2020
12Loss9–3Elin Cederroos1022 Mar 2019
11Loss9–2Claressa ShieldsUD108 Dec 2018
10Win9–1Ester KonecnaUD615 Sep 2018
9Win8–1Florence MuthoniUD629 Jun 2018
8Win7–1Nikki AdlerUD1012 May 2018
7Loss6–1Alicia NapoleonUD103 Mar 2018
6Win6–0Ester KonecnaUD630 Sep 2017
5Win5–0Klaudia VighTKO2 (6)17 Jun 2017
4Win4–0Borislava GoranovaUD1021 Jan 2017
3Win3–0Elene Sikmashvili2 (10)8 Oct 2016
2Win2–0Vladislava Lopuhova 1 (6)25 Jun 2016
1Win1–0Galina Gyumliyska623 Jan 2016

Notes and References

  1. Web site: BoxRec: Femke Hermans vs. Galina Gyumliyska. 31 March 2021. BoxRec.
  2. Web site: BoxRec: Femke Hermans vs. Vladislava Lopuhova. 31 March 2021. BoxRec.
  3. Web site: Van der Gracht. Kris. 10 October 2016. Femke Hermans (Steenhuffel) Belgisch kampioen -75 kg. 31 March 2021. www.ringtv.be. nl.
  4. Web site: 22 January 2017. Femke Hermans Shuts Out Goranova, Wins WBF International Title. 31 March 2021. Real Combat Media. en-US.
  5. Web site: Songalia. Ryan. 3 March 2018. WATCH: Alicia Napoleon after winning first world title on Wilder-Ortiz card. 31 March 2021. The Ring.
  6. Web site: 13 May 2018. Straffe prestatie: Femke Hermans kroont zich tot WBO-kampioene en wordt tweede Belgische boksster met wereldtitel. 31 March 2021. www.hln.be. nl.
  7. Web site: Fischer. Doug. 8 December 2018. Claressa Shields shuts out Femke Hermans on HBO boxing finale. 31 March 2021. The Ring.
  8. Web site: Kemp. Jay. 25 March 2019. Elin Cederroos Shocks Femke Hermans with Majority Decision Victory to Claim the IBF Super Middleweight Title. 31 March 2021. Women of Boxing. en-US.
  9. Web site: BoxRec: Femke Hermans vs. Borislava Goranova. 31 March 2021. BoxRec.
  10. Web site: 6 December 2020. Femke Hermans herovert Europese titel: "Beloning voor het vele werk". 31 March 2021. www.hln.be. nl.
  11. Web site: Savannah Marshall v Femke Hermans: Briton wins by KO to set up potential Claressa Shields fight. BBC Sport. 2024-05-21.
  12. Web site: Arslanbek Makhmudov Destroys Michael Wallisch in One Round. Boxing Scene. 2024-05-21.
  13. Web site: BOXING: FEMKE HERMANS RETAINS HER WORLD TITLE. Focus on Belgium. 2024-05-21.
  14. Web site: Boxing Results: IBO Super Welter Champ Hermans Defeats Spencer!. boxingnews24.com. 2024-05-21.