Cecilia Braekhus put a bow on her Hall of Fame career Saturday in what she previously had announced would be her final fight, defeating Ema Kozin by unanimous decision at Nova Spektrum in Lillestrom, Norway, to win the WBC and WBO junior middleweight titles.
The scores were 97-93, 96-94 and 98-92, all for the 44-year-old Braekhus, who ended her career with a 39-2-1 (9 KOs) record. The fight was her second attempt at winning belts at 154lbs, after she drew with Terri Harper for a pair of world titles in 2023.
Kozin, 26, of Ljubljana, Slovenia, dropped to 24-2-1 (12 KOs) with the loss, having previously been defeated only by Claressa Shields in 2022.
It was fitting that Braekhus, who held a welterweight title for more than 11 years before losing the undisputed championship to Jessica McCaskill in 2020, would end her career in her home country of Norway, having played a large role in lifting the country’s 33-year ban on pro boxing in 2014. She later headlined the country’s first pro card in 36 years in 2016, stopping Anne Sophie Mathis in two rounds in what may go down as her finest performance.
Kozin had won the titles in her most recent bout, a split decision over Hannah Rankin in 2023.
The event was promoted by Braekhus' First Lady Promotions company.
In other action, Philippines-born junior lightweight Bernard Angelo Torres, 19-2 (8 KOs), rebounded from his fourth-round knockout loss to Bruce Carrington in 2024 with an eight-round unanimous decision over Venezuelan Yeison Juarez, 21-10 (15 KOs). The scores were 80-72 (twice) and 79-73.
Ryan Songalia is a reporter and editor for BoxingScene.com and has written for ESPN, the New York Daily News, Rappler, The Guardian, Vice and The Ring magazine. He holds a Master’s degree in Journalism from the Craig Newmark Graduate School of Journalism and is a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America. He can be reached at ryansongalia@gmail.com or on Twitter at @ryansongalia.
