Federica Macrì gave it everything she had last night in her attempt to win the European Women’s Minimumweight Title on the road, but it wasn’t enough. After ten high-paced rounds at the Pabellón Municipal de La Albericia in Santander, the judges awarded a unanimous decision to Spain’s Maria Luz Peral. For “La Cattiva,” it was the first loss of her professional career, with official scores of 98–92, 97–93, and 97–93.
The Italian fighter has never been afraid to compete away from home, as she showed last year when she traveled to Canada and shocked the previously unbeaten Costa Rican Naomy Valle in an MVP-promoted event with a superb performance.
Once again, Macrì showed no hesitation, immediately setting a furious pace and taking the fight to her opponent from the opening bell.
Peral appeared surprised by the relentless start from the Italian and, during the first two minutes, despite responding and countering, failed to showcase her best boxing, being outworked and outlanded.
However, the hometown fighter quickly adjusted, beginning to counter effectively with precision and timing. The second and third rounds proved tough for Macrì, who, in her eagerness to press forward, neglected defense and was repeatedly caught clean.
Though her work rate slightly dropped, Peral continued to interpret the fight better over the next two rounds. The key difference was her footwork: while Macrì advanced mostly in straight lines, the Spaniard moved laterally, constantly changing angles and direction.
Despite bleeding heavily—so much so that the referee called in the ringside doctor at the start of round six—Macrì kept fighting ferociously. In that sixth round, her efforts seemed to pay off, as Peral slowed down and appeared less sharp.
Still, the Spanish fighter quickly regained control, resuming her fluid movement between exchanges, possibly following instructions from her corner.
The ninth round was a departure from the previous action: both fighters abandoned close-range warfare and opted for distance, testing each other’s timing. It almost seemed like they were conserving energy for the final round—which is exactly what happened.
After two more minutes of intense exchanges, albeit marked by fatigue on both sides, the judges rendered their verdict, crowning Maria Luz Peral as the new European champion. In my view, the decision was fair: I scored it 97–93 for the Spanish fighter, matching two of the official cards.
Macrì’s performance can be viewed from two perspectives. In terms of grit, determination, courage, and physical conditioning, she delivered an excellent fight, maintaining a very high pace throughout.
However, her technical and tactical management was less impressive. In pressing forward, she neglected feints, lateral movement, and head and upper-body defense, resulting in too many clean shots absorbed. It would also have been interesting to see more tactical variation: apart from the ninth round, Macrì followed the same approach throughout, becoming predictable.
Credit must go to the winner, who, backed by her home crowd, managed to control such a relentless opponent with authority and skill. Peral showed clear improvements compared to her previous European title attempt, which ended in a draw in Italy against Parigi Bini—a fight that, despite the disappointing result, clearly contributed to her growth.
Hopefully, the same will apply to Federica Macrì. At just 26 years old, the Aosta fighter has significant room for improvement. She will need to work on defense and tactical awareness to expand her skill set, and this loss could provide the perfect lessons for her and her team. If she does, titles and success will surely follow.