The 10 Best Female Boxers of All Time—With the Close Decisions in Context
A scorecard-aware ranking of the best female boxers ever, weighing elite wins, championships, dominance, longevity and amateur achievement.
Claressa Shields ranks as the best female boxer of all time under the standard used here: elite wins, championship achievement, dominance, longevity and—where it meaningfully separates close cases—amateur accomplishment.
It is not the only defensible answer. Katie Taylor has an exceptional professional schedule, Cecilia Brækhus owns the strongest longevity record, and Amanda Serrano won major titles in seven divisions. Changing the weight assigned to any one category changes the order.
How the ranking works
This is a résumé ranking, not a prediction about who would win hypothetical cross-era fights. It rewards:
- Quality of wins, especially victories over champions and leading contenders.
- Championship achievement, including undisputed status, divisional range and meaningful defenses.
- Dominance and longevity, rather than years active or win totals alone.
- Era and amateur context, because opportunities have varied sharply across generations.
Official results remain the starting point. A disputed decision is not converted into a loss, but a narrow win does not carry the same résumé weight as a decisive one. For the arithmetic behind those distinctions, see how boxing’s 10-point must system works.
| Rank | Boxer | Strongest résumé argument |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Claressa Shields | Undisputed in three divisions; two Olympic gold medals |
| 2 | Katie Taylor | Two-division undisputed champion with a deep elite win list |
| 3 | Amanda Serrano | Major titles in seven divisions; undisputed at featherweight |
| 4 | Cecilia Brækhus | Record-setting welterweight reign and 25 consecutive defenses |
| 5 | Lucia Rijker | Undefeated 17-0 career with 14 knockouts |
| 6 | Regina Halmich | 54-1-1 record and 38 defenses across three WIBF title reigns |
| 7 | Holly Holm | Titles in three divisions and a 14-1-1 record against champions |
| 8 | Ann Wolfe | Three-division champion with 16 knockouts in 24 wins |
| 9 | Laila Ali | Undefeated 24-0, with titles at 168 and 175 pounds |
| 10 | Jackie Nava | Two-division champion over a 21-year career |
1. Claressa Shields
Shields has the broadest top-end case. Her official Olympic profile records two gold medals, earned at middleweight in 2012 and 2016. As a professional, she became the only woman to go undisputed in three weight classes—junior middleweight, middleweight and heavyweight—and won titles in five divisions. Her best victories include Christina Hammer, Savannah Marshall, Hanna Gabriels and Franchón Crews-Dezurn.
Her résumé was still growing in 2026. Shields dropped from heavyweight to stop Kaye Scott at 1:38 of the sixth round for the WBA and WBC middleweight titles, improving to 19-0; ESPN’s report also confirms her three undisputed divisions. No other boxer on this list combines that professional range with two Olympic championships.
2. Katie Taylor
Taylor won five consecutive world-amateur titles and the inaugural Olympic women’s lightweight gold in 2012, beating Sofya Ochigava 10-8 under the points system then in use, according to Olympics.com’s career account. She then became undisputed professionally at lightweight and junior welterweight, defeating opponents including Delfine Persoon, Jessica McCaskill, Natasha Jonas, Chantelle Cameron and Serrano.
Taylor officially swept Serrano 3-0, but the margins matter. She won the first fight by split decision, the rematch 95-94 on all three cards after a point deduction, and the third 97-93, 97-93 and 95-95. ESPN lists the three verdicts and the circumstances of the deduction. Those are three major wins, not three dominant performances. Taylor would be a reasonable No. 1 for readers who give the most weight to depth of professional opposition.
3. Amanda Serrano
Serrano’s defining achievement is her range. Guinness recognized her for claiming major championships in more divisions than any other woman after she won a seventh, as the WBO reported. She later became the four-belt undisputed featherweight champion.
By September 2026, Serrano had reached 50-4-1 with 32 knockouts. Win No. 50, over Lucrecia Manzur, was a majority decision scored 116-112 twice and 114-114, while she retained the WBA and WBO featherweight belts; ESPN reported the result and record. The seven-division total includes brief stays and vacant-title wins, and Taylor defeated her three times. Those qualifications keep Serrano third without diminishing the uniqueness of her achievement.
4. Cecilia Brækhus
Brækhus owns the clearest longevity case. She held the WBA and WBC welterweight titles for 11 years and 154 days, made 25 consecutive title defenses and remained four-belt undisputed for five years and 337 days. Guinness records all three marks.
Her unbeaten run ended at 36-0 when Jessica McCaskill won a majority decision in 2020. Serrano ranks narrowly higher for divisional range, but nobody above Brækhus can match her sustained control of one division.
5. Lucia Rijker
Rijker finished 17-0 with 14 knockouts, winning super-lightweight titles and beating Chevelle Hallback, Andrea DeShong and Jane Couch. The International Boxing Hall of Fame documents her record and title history.
Her peak and dominance support an even higher placement, but 17 bouts leave a shorter professional résumé than those above her. The proposed Christy Martin fight was cancelled after Rijker suffered an Achilles injury.
6. Regina Halmich
Halmich went 54-1-1 and won titles in three divisions. She made 28 defenses of the WIBF flyweight title across two reigns and another 10 defenses at light flyweight, according to her Hall of Fame profile.
The sanctioning landscape of her era does not map neatly onto today’s four-belt system. Even with that qualification, 38 defenses across three long title reigns make her one of the sport’s outstanding champions.
7. Holly Holm
Holm won titles at junior welterweight, welterweight and junior middleweight before ending her original boxing run at 33-2-3. More persuasive than the belt count is her 14-1-1 record against past or present champions, including Christy Martin, Anne Sophie Mathis, Mary Jo Sanders, Jane Couch and Mia St. John, as detailed by the Hall of Fame.
Mathis knocked her out in 2011, but Holm won their immediate rematch by unanimous decision. Answering her most decisive defeat strengthens her case.
8. Ann Wolfe
Wolfe won titles in three divisions and retired on a 19-fight winning streak with a 24-1 record, 16 knockouts and one no-contest. Her signature result was a first-round knockout of Vonda Ward for light-heavyweight titles. The Hall of Fame chronology also records title wins over Vienna Williams, Marsha Valley and Valerie Mahfood.
Her power and peak were exceptional. A 26-bout ledger and the limited depth of some divisions keep her below the longer championship résumés.
9. Laila Ali
Ali retired 24-0 with 21 knockouts. She won titles at super middleweight and light heavyweight and defeated Valerie Mahfood, Erin Toughill and Christy Martin; the Hall of Fame lists her record and title chronology.
The reservation is opposition. Ali never fought Rijker or Wolfe, the two contemporaries most likely to have strengthened—or tested—her claim. An unbeaten record demonstrates dominance, but it does not settle a résumé comparison by itself.
10. Jackie Nava
Nava edges Christy Martin for the final place on sustained championship merit. She won inaugural WBA bantamweight and WBC super-bantamweight titles in consecutive 2005 fights, later unified WBA and WBC belts at 122 pounds and retired 40-4-4. Her Hall of Fame record includes wins over Lisa Brown, Alicia Ashley, Edith Matthysse and Yazmín Rivas.
Losses to Alejandra Oliveras, Marcela Acuña and Ana María Torres limit Nava’s placement, but a 21-year career spent repeatedly facing leading rivals gives her the final spot.
The closest omissions
Christy Martin is the hardest omission. Her 49-7-3 record, 31 knockouts and 1996 fight with Deirdre Gogarty made her a central figure in expanding the audience for women’s boxing. The Hall of Fame credits her with wins over Mia St. John, Belinda Laracuente and other contenders. This ranking separates historical influence from in-ring résumé, where losses to Ali and Holm count against her.
Delfine Persoon, Natascha Ragosina, Ana María Torres and Yesica Bopp also have credible top-10 cases. Prioritize title longevity and Brækhus rises; prioritize elite opposition and Taylor can be first; prioritize unbeaten dominance and Rijker or Ali moves higher. The official result, championship setting and scorecard margins all matter more than the final record alone.