Alycia Baumgardner puts Amanda Serrano first, says Caroline Dubois “way down the line”

Alycia Baumgardner made it clear she is looking past Caroline Dubois and toward Amanda Serrano, a move that reflects a wider pattern in boxing where fighters with name value focus on the biggest available paydays rather than the next contender in line. Baumgardner pointed to Serrano and Katie Taylor as the fights she wants, while placing Dubois outside her immediate plans. “When I do decide to move to 135, then that fight for Dubois is potentially there, but she’s way down the line,” Baumgardner said.

That stance follows a familiar route in the sport, where once a fighter builds a name, the focus often shifts toward marquee opponents tied to revenue and visibility, leaving lesser-known contenders waiting even when they are in position. Baumgardner reinforced that separation by naming Serrano and Taylor as the fights that fit her current position, describing them as the kind of matchups that belong at the top of a card rather than part of a step-by-step climb. “Who I do want is Amanda Serrano. Who I do want is Katie Taylor,” she said. “These are big fights. These are main event fights.”

Dubois, meanwhile, was left in a different lane, with Baumgardner indicating she needs to build her case further before entering that level of discussion, particularly with a fight against Terry Harper still in front of her. The pattern is not unique to Baumgardner, and it has become one of the defining traits of the sport. Being next in line doesn’t guarantee anything, because the fight usually goes to whoever brings the most money and the least risk, even when a contender is right there waiting.

The approach makes sense from a business standpoint, since once a fighter gets a name, the focus usually shifts to the biggest paydays, even if that ends up blurring the line between competition and selection, where fights are made more through negotiation than any real order. Baumgardner’s focus on Serrano fits that model, especially with both fighters connected to MVP and positioned for a major event in New York, a setting that increases the value of the matchup beyond a standard title defense.

For contenders like Dubois, that leaves a different task. The opportunity is still there, but it has to be built through performances that make the fight harder to ignore, rather than relying on position alone. Baumgardner framed her decisions as timing and opportunity, but the direction is clear when looking at the bigger picture.

The biggest fights are not always about who is next, but about which matchup brings the most value when the moment arrives.