Ramla Ali's Split-Decision Win Over Kreps: The Cards, the Punch Stats and the Backlash

ARLINGTON, Texas — Ramla Ali is a world champion at 36, but the scorecards that made her one are now the story. Ali beat Mikiah Kreps by split decision on Nov. 8 at College Park Center to win the vacant IBF and WBO super bantamweight titles on the MVPW 07 card, a result confirmed by Most Valuable Promotions, The Ring, BBC Sport and Sky Sports.

The cards. Two judges scored it 97-92 and 96-93 for Ali. The third had it 98-91 for Kreps, a seven-point gap in the other direction. BBC Sport, The Guardian and Sky Sports all report the same three totals. The Guardian also published its own unofficial score, 97-92 for Kreps.

The knockdown. Ali's clearest moment came in the third round, when a hook to the chin forced Kreps to touch the canvas with her glove. BBC Sport reports Kreps disputed the call, but replays showed the glove did touch down. That 10-8 round is the margin on the two cards that went Ali's way.

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The punch stats. CompuBox numbers reported by both BBC Sport and The Guardian had Kreps outlanding Ali 115 to 78 overall and 91 to 70 in power punches. The Guardian adds that, by CompuBox's count, Kreps threw 525 punches to Ali's 346 and landed more in eight of the 10 rounds. Punch stats don't score fights, but a gap that size explains why the 98-91 card for Kreps has company outside the ring.

The backlash. Veteran promoter Lou DiBella posted on X right after the decision, calling for an investigation and tagging MVP co-founder Nakisa Bidarian. The Guardian also reported his reaction.

As of this writing, I found no public response from MVP to the call for an investigation and no announcement of any review. The decision stands as the official result, and Ali holds both belts.

Ali's side. An emotional Ali fell to her knees when the result was read and dedicated the win to her late father, according to BBC Sport, The Guardian and Sky Sports. She also gave Kreps credit for the pace. "Every time I went to the corner, I kept saying, 'I'm so tired. I'm so tired,' because your work rate was just next level," Ali said in the ring, as quoted by The Guardian. It was her second world-title attempt, after a decision loss to Yamileth Mercado for the WBC belt, and it ends Kreps' unbeaten record.

What's next. BBC Sport points to a possible unification with Skye Nicolson, who kept her WBC super bantamweight title on the same card and is also signed to MVP. Nothing has been announced. Kreps, meanwhile, comes out of her first loss with a strong case for a rematch, though no rematch has been reported either.

For the full night, read Kimster's MVPW 07 results. Think you'd have scored it differently? Next time a card like this comes around, lock in your call early with Fight Picker and Guess the Rounds, and argue it out on the community pages.