Three-time, two-division World Champion Miyo Yoshida (18-5, 0 KOs) is long overdue for her 8th world title fight as the International Boxing Federation’s (IBF) No. 1 rated, mandatory challenger.
Now, Team Yoshida is demanding the IBF order reigning, undisputed World Bantamweight Champion Cherneka Johnson (19-2, 8 KOs) to fight Miyo next.
“I am ready to challenge Johnson,” Yoshida said. “She is a respected champion, but I will emerge as the undisputed bantamweight champion of the world when our fight is finished.”
Yoshida, 37, won the WBO Super Flyweight titles in 2019 and 2021. On December 23, 2024, she stepped in as a late replacement in San Francisco and upset IBF Bantamweight World champion Ebanie Bridges (9-1) by a 10-round unanimous decision (99-91, 99-91, 97-93).
On October 23, 2024, Yoshida relinquished her IBF title in a 10-round rematch against Shurretta Metcalf (13-5-1, 2 KOs), with the judges awarding disputed scores of 99-91, 96-94, and 96-93. Yoshida’s manager, Attorney Keith Sullivan, submitted an appeal to the IBF, asserting that Yoshida’s performance—highlighted by accurate jabs and a superior punch connection rate—warranted a different outcome. The appeal was substantiated by COMPUBOX statistics. Furthermore, Yoshida employed defensive strategies that limited Metcalf’s effectiveness, resulting in 91% of Metcalf’s punches not landing. In total, Yoshida connected with 50% more punches (96-64) than Metcalf and had a significantly higher accuracy rate of 22% compared to Metcalf’s 9%.
The IBF ruled this past January to install Yoshida as its No. 1, mandatory challenger, ordering Metcalf to defend her crown against Yoshida by October 2025.
Metcalf, though, requested and was granted a voluntary defense by the IBF for a unification fight with Johnson, the WBA World Champion (18-2, 8 KOs), who with an 9th-round knockout of Metcalf also captured the vacant World Boxing Council (WBC) and World Boxing Organization (WBO) world titles.
Yoshida, who took a risky fight this past February 1 to stay relatively active, defeating Beata Dudek by way of a 10-round unanimous decision (99-91, 97-93, 96-94), remains the IBF’s No. 1, mandatory challenger for Johnson, who last Saturday in Miami defeated challenger Amanda Galle (12-1-1, 1 KO) by way of a unanimous decision in her first undisputed world titles defense on the Jake Paul-Anthony Joshua card.
“Johnson versus Yoshida is the best fight in the bantamweight division,” Sullivan stated, “champion against the most dangerous contender. This is the fight fans deserve to see. Miyo Yoshida never lost her standing in this division; she lost her title on paper. She’s the IBF mandatory challenger for a reason, and a fight with Johnson is the rightful next chapter.”
Yoshida, known as the “Fighting Single Mother” in Japan, is a respected role model and recipient of Ring Magazine’s 2023 Most Inspirational Female Fighter award. She is among just 23 female world champions from Japan and only the sixth to hold world titles in multiple divisions.
Sullivan, a former New York State Athletic Commission Deputy Commissioner, also manages undefeated Brooklyn heavyweight prospect Pryce Taylor (10-0, 6 KOs), Bronx NYPD officer Nisa Rodriguez (3-1, 1 KO), and junior featherweight/influencer Brooklyn “The Big Deal” Barwick (4-0, 4 KOs). Sullivan also co-manages IBF Welterweight World title challenger Paddy “The Real Deal” Donovan (14-2, 11 KOs) and his cousin, middleweight Jim Donovan (2-0, 1 KO), alongside head trainer and former world champion Andy Lee.
