Prior to her match against Mikaela Mayer at the M&S Bank Arena in Liverpool, England on Saturday night, IBF welterweight champion Natasha Jonas embraces the pressure of competing in her hometown.
Natasha Jonas (14-2-1, 9 KOs) from England formerly held the junior middleweight championships of the WBC, WBO, and IBF and will be making her first defence of the IBF title, which she won in Manchester with a knockout victory over Canadian Kandi Wyatt earlier last year.
Jonas created history in March of last year when she became the first female winner of the prestigious Boxer of the Year award from the British Boxing Board of Control. Jonas a 39-year old British professional boxer could have put down her gloves long ago but, she is fighting this week in what might end up being the most significant match of her career.
“That’s the motivation, that’s the drive. For me to be saying I’m one of the best pound-for-pound and move myself up that list, I have to be beating people in that list and that’s what she is. That’s what she brings,” said Jonas in media reports.
“Sometimes I feel I need that fear factor to bring out the best in me. We’ve seen it against [Terri] Harper and we’ve seen it against Katie Taylor and we’ve seen it in other fights; [Marie Eve] Dicaire, [Patricia] Berghult and [Chris] Namus, where you’re not always 100% going to win and I do think that brings out the best in me and the best performances,” she added.
Before losing the titles in a four-belt unification match against Alycia Baumgardner via split decision in London in October 2022, Mikaela Mayer (19-1, 5 KOs) a 33 year old boxer from the US had held the WBO and IBF super featherweight titles.
“Mikaela definitely gives me that fear factor. I don’t want to lose. I don’t want to be in my hometown losing to her, or to anyone,” said Jonas.
“There’s always pressure every time we step into the ring, no matter where it is. Obviously hometown adds a little bit more but it’s still the same thing. It’s no different to any other boxing match in how I approach it and the training that goes into it. It’s boxing. And it’s another fight,” she added.
