Michelle Sutcliffe

Michelle Sutcliffe (born 3 February 1967) is a female boxer from England who also practices the martial arts sport of Muay Thai, where she is undefeated in nine fights, with three wins by knockout.

Sutcliffe and Germany's Regina Halmich have helped to increase the popularity of women's boxing in Europe. Sutcliffe is one of the most famous female fighters to come from England. She is a native of the Leeds area.

Her professional boxing career began on 2 November 1996 with her first world title try, as she went right away and challenged Halmich for the WIBF's world Flyweight title, losing by a second-round knockout. She did not know what was coming towards her. She had never fought competition on this level.

Sutcliffe met Para Draine on her second bout, 24 June 1998, losing by knockout in round five, at Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Her first win came against Diane Berry on 28 June of that year, when she defeated Berry by decision in five rounds back home in England.

On 12 February 1999, she lost to Sengul Ozokcu by a six-round decision in Denmark. She followed that defeat with two wins in a row, and then, on 7 October 2000, she and Halmich were rematched in Berlin, once again with the WIBF's world Flyweight championship on the line. Sutcliffe proved more competitive than in their first match, but lost again, this time by a ten-round decision. On her next fight, she lost to Kim Messer by decision in ten in South Korea.

After a knockout win, she received her third world title try, challenging Daisy Lang on 29 October 2001 for Lang's WIBF world Jr. Bantamweight title, in Germany. Sutcliffe lost by a seven-round technical decision when the fight's referee dictated that a cut suffered by Lang had been produced by a headbutt. The bout's result proved to be controversial, as many at ringside and television viewers thought they had seen a punch by Sutcliffe causing Lang's cut. Had the referee ruled that the cut was produced by a punch, Sutcliffe would have been declared winner and world champion by a seventh-round knockout instead.

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