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Lightweight Delfine
Persoon
was born in Moorslede, Belgium on January 14, 1985.
She took
up judo at age 6 following her older sister's interest in the sport.
She won medals at the provincial, Flemish and Belgian national
levels
before competing in international judo tournaments - including the
Youth Olympics in Spain where she took fourth place. Her
career in judo was ended by a back injury.
Delfine was always athletic and
she competed in
running and gymnastics while in high school. After
graduation she enlisted
for training as a police officer and that was where she first
received training in martial arts.
She briefly tried sport karate but she felt more at home
with boxing and swtched to that. She trains with Filiep
Tampere at the BoxingClub Lichtervelde.
She was undefeated in twelve
amateur bouts between January 2008 and April 2009 and she topped
off her amateur boxing career by winning the Belgian
national championship in 2009.
She made
her professional
debut on May 23, 2009 at Zaal Ogierlande in Gits, West-Vlaanderen,
Belgium, weighing in at 130 lbs and knocking out Jana Latova (139 lbs)
of Košice, Slovakia in the second round of a scheduled six-rounder.
Latova fell to 1-6 (0 KO's).
On October 4, 2009 at Olympia
Stadion in Marke, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine Persoon (127¾ lbs)
won a six-round unanimous (58-56,59-55,59-55) decision over Renata
Szebeledi (121¼ lbs) of Budapest, Hungary who fell to 0-4.
On Novermber 21, 2009
at Sporthal Riderfort in Ruddervoorde, West-Vlaanderen,
Belgium, Delfine Persoon (130 lbs) TKO'd Mariska Mulder (132¼ lbs) of
the Netherlands in the second round of a scheduled
six-rounder.
The 31-year-old Mulder fell to 0-1-1 and has not boxed professionally
since.
On December 5, 2009 at
BoxingClub Noble Art in Deinze, Oost-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine
Persoon (133½ lbs) won a clear six-round unanimous (59-55,60-54,60-54)
decision over Arlène
de Freitas (137¾ lbs) of the Netherlands, dropping
de Freitas's pro record to 1-1.
Delfine set out to make her mark on
the European boxing scene in 2010, her first full year of professional
competition.
On March 6, 2010 at Zaal
Ogierlande in Gits, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine Persoon (130¼
lbs) won a clear eight-round unanimous (80-71,80-72,80-72) decision
over Julie Robert (130¼ lbs) of Saint-Nazaire, France.
On April 30, 2010 at Sporthal
Tempelhof in Bruges, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine Persoon (131¼
lbs) won another clear six-round unanimous (6054x3) decision
over Arlène
de Freitas (132¼ lbs) in a rematch of their bout four months earlier.
de Freitas fell to 1-2.
On May 24, 2010 at Brielpoort
in Deinze, Oost-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine Persoon (125¾ lbs) knocked
out Nicky Mutsaert (121¼ lbs) of Brussels, Belgium in the second round
of a scheduled six-rounder, dropping the 40-year-old Mutseart's pro
record to 1-2 (1 KO).
On
September 11, 2010 at Studio Hall in Bruges, West-Vlaanderen,
Belgium, Delfine Persoon (130¼ lbs) won a clear eight-round unanimous
(80-71,80-71,80-72) decision over Kristine Shergold (132¼ lbs) of
Exeter, Devon, England. Shergold fell to 4-4-0 with the
loss.
On October 9, 2010 at Sporthal
De Branding in Middelkerke, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium,
Delfine Persoon (130 lbs) won by a second round
disqualification over veteran kickboxer Zelda Tekin (132¼ lbs) of
Charleroi, Belgium in a scheduled six-rounder. Tekin, who had
been fighting professionally since 2002 and who had
last fought for the WBC world Junior Welterweight title in
2008, saw her pro boxing record fall to 4-3(3 KO's) with this
loss.
On November 1, 2010
at Stedelijke Sporthalle in Izegem, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium,
Zelda Tekin (133¾ lbs) won by a fourth-round TKO in a rematch with
Delfine Persoon (131¼ lbs) that had been scheduled to eight rounds.
Tekin, who had just turned 35, improved to 5-3 (4 KO's) with
the win.
On December 10, 2010 at Grote
Markt in Sint Niklaas, Oost-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine
Persoon knocked out Mirabela Georghe of Romania in the second
round of a scheduled six-rounder, dropping Georghe's record to 0-2.
On December 25, 2010 at
Stedelijke Sporthalle in Izegem, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine
Persoon (135½ lbs) won a scheduled six-rounder when Daniëlla
David (134 lbs) of Bucharest, Romania retired at the start of the third
round. David's record fell to 4-21-1 (1 KO) with the
loss.
Persoon's eight bouts in 2010
made her Europe's busiest professional female boxer for that
year.
On March 5, 2011 at Sporthall
in Lichtervelde, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine Persoon (134½)
captured the vacant EBU Lightweight title with a ten-round
unanimous(100-90,99-91,99-91) decision over Nicole Boss (133½ lbs) of
Wohlen BE, Switzerland who fell to 5-3-1 (4 KO's) with the loss.
On April 1, 2011 at
Topsporthal Vlaanderen in Gent, Oost-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine
Persoon (132¼ lbs) won a six-round unanimous (60-54,60-54,60-53)
decision over Floarea Lihet (129 lbs) of Bucharest, Romania, who fell
to 10-8-3 (3 KO's).
On June 24, 2011 at Feesttent
in Torhout, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine Persoon (132¼ lbs) won an
eight-round unanimous (80-72x3) decision over Milena Koleva (136¾ lbs)
of Silven, Bulgaria, who fell to 3-3-1 (0 KO's).
On
September 30, 2011 at Topsporthal Vlaanderen in Gent, Oost-Vlaanderen,
Belgium, Delfine Persoon (137¼ lbs) won a six-round unanimous
(60-53,60-52,60-53) decision over a battered and bloodied Angel
McKenzie (139 lbs) of London, England who fell to 4-25-0 (0 KO's).
On November 1, 2011 at
Stedelijke Sporthalle in Izegem, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium,
Delfine Persoon (132¼ lbs) defended the EBU Lightweight title
with a ten-round unanimous (100-91,100-90,100-90) decision over Miriam
Dellal (133½ lbs) of Vendome, France. Dellal who was the reigning
French Lightweight Champion, fell to 7-4-2 (1 KO).
On February 25, 2012 at
Expo-Hallen in Roeselare, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine Persoon
(133½
lbs) won the WIBF Lightweight title with a fifth-round TKO of
Italian-born Lucia Morelli (132¼ lbs) of Offenburg,
Baden-Württemberg, Germany. This was a non-stop action packed
battle at close quarters in which Persoon finally overwhelmed Morelli
with the intensity and volume of her punches, and the fght was stopped
when Morelli began to take steady punishment to her head in a corner of
the ring. Morelli fell to 17-3-0 (8 KO's).
On
April 27, 2012 at Topsporthal Vlaanderen in
Gent, Oost-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine Persoon (135½ lbs) won an
eight-round unanimous (80-72x3) decision over the tough and well
experienced Loly Munoz of Barcelona, Spain who fell to 11-10-3 (6
KO's).
On June 29, 2012 in Moorslede,
West-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine Persoon (136¾ lbs) TKO'd Valija
Lasmanovica of Riga, Latvia in the third round of a scheduled six.
Lasmanovica fell to 1-4-1 with the loss.
On September 21, 2012 at Lotto
Arena in Antwerp, Belgium, Delfine Persoon (133 lb) TKO'd Erin
McGowan (5'8", 135 lbs) of Perth, Western Australia at 1:48 in the
seventh round of a scheduled ten-rounder for the vacant IBF Lightweight
title. McGowan had been knocked down by a one-two to the head earlier
in the round. The fight was stopped after a fired-up
Persoon drove McGowan around the ring and began unloading with the
Australian trapped against the corner ropes (see video above). McGowan,
a former WBO
Lightweight champion who had been training by sparring with Layla McCarter in Las Vegas,
Nevada, fell to 14-2-0 (7 KO's) with her second
straight loss.
On November 1, 2012 at Sporthal in Izegem,
West-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine won by a third-round KO over Marianna
Gulyas of Hungary in a scheduled six-rounder. Gulyas fell to
10-11-0 (2 KO's).
On January 12, 2013 at Sporthal Sint Pieter
in Sint Truiden, Limburg, Belgium, Defline won a 10-round unanimous
(100-90,99-91,100-90) decision over Anita Torti of Pavia, Italy for the
WIBF Lightweight title. Ryan Bivens reported
that "Torti was reluctant to let her
hands go and pretty much just let Persoon bum rush her. Persoon left
plenty of openings for Torti to counter, but she didn't take advantage.
To make matters worse Torti also constantly retreated. It's no surprise
Persoon pitched a shutout on two of the official cards." Torti
fell to 6-2-1 (3 KO's) with the loss.
On February 23, 2013 at Sporthal Schiervelde
in Roeselare, West-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine (134½ lbs) won an
eight-round unanimous (80-72,80-72,79-73) decision over the well
experienced Zarika Njeri (134¾ lbs) of Nairobi, Kenya who fell to
23-7-1 (14 KO's).
On March 29, 2013 at Topsporthal Vlaanderen
in Gent, Oost-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine (133¼
lbs) knocked out Kremena Petkova of Razgrad, Bulgaria in the second
round of a scheduled ten-rounder. Petkova fell to 7-6-1 (1 KO) with the
loss.
On August 23, 2013 at Kursaal in Oostende,
West-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Delfine (137¼ lbs) TKO'd Galina Ivanova
Giumliiska (131½
lbs) of Sofia, Bulgaria in the second round of a scheduled
eight-rounder. Giumliiska, a frequent "opponent" for rising
European fighters, fell to 9-25 (1 KO) with the loss.
On October 4 2013 at Gent, Oost-Vlaanderen,
Belgium, Delfine (134½
lbs) won an eight-round unanimous (80-71,80-71,80-72) decision over
former WIBA World Featherweight and GBU Junior Lightweight champion
Irma Balijagic-Adler (130¾ lbs) of Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The fight was dominated by Persoon but both boxers were cut by
accidental head clashes. The loss dropped Balijagic-Adler's record to
14-4 (7 KO's).
On November 11, 2013, at Zwevezele in West-Vlaanderen,
Belgium, Delfine (136½ lbs) won by a third-round TKO over Eva Halasi
(138¼ lbs) of Senta, Serbia in a scheduled eight-rounder. Halasi
(at right in photo) fell to 11-7 (9 KO's) with the loss.
On December 13, 2013 at Zaal Forum in
Aalst, Oost-Vlaanderen, Belgium, in a much-anticipated rematch for the
WIBF, WBF and WIBA Lightweight titles, Delfine TKO'd Italian-born Lucia
Morelli of Germany near the end of the final round of a scheduled ten.
According to several on-line reports,
Persoon dominated the fight and had knocked Morelli down in the sixth
and ninth rounds before referee Daniel Van de WIele intervened to save
Morelli from unnecessary further punishment. Persoon advanced her
record to 28-1 (13 KO's) while winning her third world title. Morelli
fell to 18-4 (8 KO's) with her second TKO loss to Persoon.
On April 20, 2014,
in Zwevezele, Belgium, in a battle for supremacy of the lightweight division of women’s
boxing, Delfine Persoon wins the WBC lightweight title with a
ten-round unanimous decision (96-92/96-92/96-93) over Erica
Anabella “La Pantera” Farias who was making her twelfth defense
of her former title. The prestigious WBC lightweight title will
join the WIBF, WBF, & WIBA lightweight titles around the waist
of Persoon. Employing her size and strength advantage, Persoon
(29-1, 13 KOs) of Roeselare, Belgium, crowded Farias (19-1, 9
KOs) on the inside not allowing the arguably more skilled
Argentine fight from a more comfortable range. During the course
of the battle, Farias lost two points resulting from fouls (7th
& 9th) and Persoon was deducted a point in round seven for an
infraction of the
Full Story
On September 27, 2014, at theZaal Ogierlande, Gits,
West-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Persoon, 133¼, won an eight round
unanimous decision over Judy Waguthii, 136.
On November 11, 2014, in Zwevezele, West-Vlaanderen,
Belgium
Persoon, 31-1-0 (10KO), won by a 1:28, 9th rd TKO over Diana Prazak,
13-3-0 (9KO) retaining her WBC Lightweight title. Final Scores
according to Boxrec were 80-72, 80-71, and 80-71.
On February 28, 2015, at the Ghelamco Football
stadium, in Ghent, Oost-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Persoon, now 32-1-0
(15KO), of Roselare, Belgium, won by an eighth round TKO over
Florence Muthoni, now 11-5-2 (5KO), of Nairobi, Kenya. The bout was
a non-title fight, scheduled for eight rounds in the lightweight
division.
On April 25, 2015, in Sternensaal, Berne,
Switzerland, Persoon, 133, of Belgium successfully defended her WBC
Lightweight title, against Nicole Boss, 133, of Switzerland, by a
ninth round TKO. This was a rematch for the two, when in the first
fight that took place in 2011, Nicole had lost by a 10-round
unanimous decision.
On September 26, 2015, at the Gits, West-Vlaanderen,
Belgium
Persoon, 136.5, won an eight round unanimous decision over Jane Kavulani,
133.5.
On November 11, 2015, in Zwevezele, Belgium, in a
highly rated bout (five-star on Boxrec) Persoon, 133¼,
defeated Maiva Hamadouche, 130¾, by a ten-round unanimous decision.
The two were fighting for the WBC Lightweight world title.
Final judges scores were 96-84, 98-93, and 97-93.
On June 4, 2016, at the Sporthal Schiervelde,
Roeselare, Belgium
Persoon, 133, of Belgium, won a ten-round unanimous decision over
Christina "Black Mamba" Linardatou, 132¼, from Athens, Greece. Final
judges scores were 90-99, 91-98, 90-99. Delfine was defending her
WBC Lightweight World title belt.
On November 11, 2016, at the Sporthal De zwaluw,
Zwevezele, in West-Vlaanderen, Belgium, Persoon won by a DQ in
the first round over Ruth Aquino. Persoon was defending her WBC
Lightweight belt.
On November 11, 2017, in Zwevezele, Belgium,
Persoon, 133.5, won a ten-round unanimous decision over Myriam
Dellal, 134¼. Persoon was defending her WBC Lightweight world title.
Final judges scores were 99-91, 99-91, 100-90. The bout was a
four-star bout rated on Boxrec.
On January 20, 2018, in Moorslede, Belgium, Persoon,
won an eight-round unanimous decision over Monica Gentili. Final
judges scores is 80-71, 80-72, and 80-72. Boxrec rated this fight at
one star matchup.
On June 9, 2018, at the Eernegem, in West-Vlaanderen, Belgium,
Persoon, 41-1-0 (16KO), of Belgium, successfully defended her
WBC Lightweight world title against Natalia Vanesa del Valle Aguirre,
8-11-3, of Cordoba, Argentina, when she won by a ten-round unanimous
decision. Final judges scores were 100-89, 100-88, and 99-90.
On December 8, 2018, at the Ardooie, West-Vlaanderen,
Belgium
Persoon won by a tenth round TKO over Judy Waguthii. Persoon was defending
her WBC Lightweight world title.
On March 9, 2019, at the Kortrijk, West-Vlaanderen,
Belgium,
Persoon, now 43-1-0 (18 KO), won by a sixth round RTD over Melissa
St. Vil, 11-4-4 (1KO). Persoon was defending her WBC Lightweight
title. Belgium's Persoon has held the WBC Lightweight title since
2014 when she had defeated Erica Farias in April of that year, and
this will make her ninth defense when she fights St. Vil.
On June 1, 2019, at the Madison Square Gardens, in
New York,
Katie Taylor won a close majority decision over Delfine Persoon. The
two were fighting for the IBF, WBA, WBC and WBO lightweight titles.
On November 11, 2019, in Versluys Dome, Oostende,
Persoon, 127¼, defeated Helen Joseph, 127¼, by a
ten-round unanimous decision, with final judges scores of 97-93,
97-93, and 98-92.
On August 22, 2020, at the Matchroom
Fight Camp, in Brentwood, Essex, UK, the rematch between Lightweight champion Katie Taylor vs. Delfine Persoon
took place without an audience due to the pandemic.
Taylor won by a 10-round unanimous decision, where the fight took
place at the Matchroom Fight Camp, in Brentwood. The two
were fighting for Taylor's Lightweight world title belts that
included the WBC, WBA, IBF, and WBO. Final judges scores were
96-94, 98-93, and 96-94. ..Full
Story
Delfine Persoon and Katie Taylor were
both named WBAN's September 2020 Fighter of the month. Which made
this the second time that they were both named as Fighter of the
month together. Persoon and Taylor are some of the very top elite
female boxers in the sport!
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last updated: Thursday, April 10 2014
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