Natasha Jonas claimed there is 'no place like home' after she weighed in for her homecoming fight at the M&S Bank Arena tomorrow night.
Jonas became WBO super-welterweight world champion after a second-round knockout victory over Christian Namus at the Manchester Arena in February. The 38-year-old had previously enjoyed a terrific amateur career, in which she became the first female boxer to compete for Great Britain, and the first woman to compete in the sport for Team GB at the Olympic Games.
Now, she has the opportunity to unify the division against undefeated WBC champion Patricia Berghult tomorrow night. The fight kicks off a monumental September for women’s boxing.
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Both fighters came in well under the weight limit at 10st 9lbs 5oz at Friday’s weigh-in - and Jonas explained why she is ready to thrive off the occasion of fighting in her home city.
"There's no place like home," she said. "I have to box smart, box clever, keep my concentration and just impose my strengths. It's been a long old journey of ups and downs but we got there in the end and we're going to continue."
Berghult has a flawless 15-0 record and Jonas, trained by Joe Gallagher, knows she is in for a tough technical night against the Swede.
She said: "A technical fight. She's a technical boxer and I'm a technical boxer so a technical fight."
While speaking earlier this week, Jonas insisted 'the fire is still burning' in her as she prepares for her first fight in Liverpool for three years.
"Having reached the ultimate goal of being world champion, the stress and pressure is now off," she said.
"I have proved to people I'm world level. The fire is still burning and you just go on to bigger and better things. I've gained respect. I feel like a weight has been lifted and I'm going to go out and enjoy myself."
Click here for more information and to buy tickets for the BOXXER event on 3rd September at the M&S Bank Arena.
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