Alycia Baumgardner has no interest in fighting Caroline Dubois, at least not yet. The American unified champion made that abundantly clear in the hours after retaining her WBA, WBO and IBF titles Saturday morning at Madison Square Garden, where she controlled a 10-round bout against Bo Mi Re Shin.
When asked about the escalating back-and-forth with Dubois, Baumgardner was blunt. "Like I said, I'm a piranha," she said. "That's a guppy. Get her out of here."
The dismissal marks the latest jab in a growing feud between the two junior lightweight champions. Dubois, 25, won the WBC and WBO titles on Easter Sunday when she outpointed Terri Harper over 10 rounds at Kensington Oval in London. In the aftermath, she called out Baumgardner, framing the matchup as an essential collision between boxing's best. "The best versus the best," Dubois said.
Baumgardner wasn't impressed, labeling Dubois's performance a "C-level" effort. Since then, Dubois has leaned harder into the narrative, appearing on Sky Sports to predict that Baumgardner would struggle with Shin and arguing the fight could expose flaws in the American's game. She also rehashed Baumgardner's 2023 positive test for a performance-enhancing drug, a ruling that was overturned after investigators determined the use was unintentional.
Dubois suggested Baumgardner has told Most Valuable Promotions, their shared management company, that she doesn't want the fight. "She is not about that life," Dubois said. "She is not as gangster as she makes out to be."
Baumgardner's response was to look elsewhere entirely. She named Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano as the opponents worth her time, particularly Taylor, the legendary Irish fighter who has signaled plans to retire later this year after a final bout in Dublin at Croke Park.
"When we talk about Katie Taylor, we're talking about someone very skilled," Baumgardner said. "But when it comes to high-level women's boxing, she's the perfect opponent to show that separation."
Serrano emerged as a backup option, with Baumgardner suggesting a New York showdown at Madison Square Garden would make sense. "It doesn't matter who's tougher," she said. "Put me in there and I'll show you."
The two fighters are both signed to Most Valuable Promotions, the company co-founded by boxer-influencer Jake Paul, which recently launched MVPW, a dedicated women's platform backed by an ESPN media rights deal designed to give female fighters regular television exposure. Dubois headlined the inaugural MVPW event in London, while Baumgardner topped the second card in New York.
When pressed on why she won't engage with Dubois's challenge, Baumgardner made her position clear: the British fighter simply isn't operating at her level. "When you talk about my career and where I'm going, it has to align with the biggest fights," she said. "I'm at that level now. Dubois is a great fighter, but she's not where I am. This is a respect game. You don't just get a fight by calling someone out. You have to put the work in. I'm a prizefighter, not a charity fighter."
Author James Rodriguez: "Dubois has the goods to become a star, but Baumgardner's refusal to engage suggests the American is genuinely hunting bigger prey, not hiding behind excuses."
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