Despite HBO's long history with broadcasting many memorable and historic boxing fights, it has never broadcast a live women's boxing match until now.
In the co-main event slot of the May 5 telecast headlined by Gennady Golovkin's unified middleweight title defense against Vanes Martirosyan, undisputed women's welterweight champion Cecilia Braekhus will defend her titles against Kali Reis.
In a press release, promoter Tom Loeffler said he is excited to help bring Braekhus into the United States and have her be part of a major American televised boxing card.
"I am so proud to help present the first female bout to be televised live on HBO," Loeffler said. "Undefeated world female welterweight champion Cecilia Braekhus, boxing's only undisputed world champion, will have her hands full against former WBC world female middleweight champion Kali Reis."
Often considered to be the best pound-for-pound female boxer in the world, Braekhus is 32-0 as a pro boxer. Braekhus won her first two world titles, the WBA and WBC titles, in the same fight in 2009 and has since then collected every major women's boxing world title at welterweight. Braekhus now currently holds the WBA, WBC, WBO, IBF and IBO women's welterweight titles and has not fought since stopping Mikaela Lauren in six rounds back in October.
Reis, a former WBC women's middleweight champion, sports a 13-6-1 record, but has won her last three fights which all took place in 2017. Reis' last loss came in 2016 when she lost to current WBC and WBO women's middleweight champion Christina Hammer.
Fightful will have live coverage of the card, scheduled to take place on HBO on May 5 at 11 p.m. EST.
