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Natasha Jonas hopes her latest pursuit will include a closer relationship with Katie Taylor

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The route may have been complicated at times, but Natasha Jonas always had a clear vision of where she was heading.

Jonas became the first British female boxer to compete in the Olympic Games. She turned professional after taking a break from the sport to give birth to her daughter, and then kept her faith in herself by winning the world title at the third attempt. Jonas, from Liverpool, has always had a goal or task to focus on.

The IBF welterweight world champion knows the end of her career is coming, but she is unsure when it will end.

Jonas (15-2-1, 9 KO) signed a long-term promotional deal with Boxxer in November 2021, and with Sky Sports heavily supporting women’s boxing, it looked like Jonas would finally be able to put his years of tough work to work professionally and financially.

The following year she moved up from lightweight to junior middleweight and stormed through the 154-pound division, winning three world titles and the British Boxing Board of Control Fight of the Year award, and became one of the faces of Sky Sports’ boxing coverage.

Since then, Jonas has been more of a pundit than a fighter. She made her solo appearance in 2023 — defeating Kandi Wyatt to win the vacant IBF title — and has fought just once this year, eking out a stunning split decision victory over Mikaela Mayer in January.

When she left the ring in Liverpool that night, Jonas did so with a career-defining victory under her belt and the praise of promoters and Sky Sports ringing in her ears. She couldn’t have been in a better position to choose the ideal exit route from the sport, but it’s been a never-ending series of distractions since.

“When you’re a world champion, you always have a target on your back, but six or seven months out of the ring is too long. It was the same before,” Jonas told BoxingScene.

“I had such a great and successful 2022 that I thought, ‘Okay, this is it. I’m going to get going.’ It’s just a bust in the broadest sense of the word. I do better when I’m lively. That large downtime and waiting is not good for any athlete — not just me.

“It’s not the players. It’s the business side of it that’s the reason for the delay. If we could have the rematch with Mikaela Mayer in May, we would have. We were hoping for June at the latest. It didn’t happen. She agrees, I agree – you’d think that would be the hardest part – but we both agreed to our terms right away.

“Boxxer said they couldn’t do it, so we’re going somewhere else. We go to Top Rank and they say, ‘Yeah, we can do it, but it’ll have to be on the Queensberry show.’ We take it to Queensberry and they say, ‘No.’

“I think there were some intricate details about the rematch clauses and who gets options. Honestly, I presented it as something straightforward, but it was a bit more complicated than that.”

Jonas is well aware of her position in the sport. She was one of the pioneers who paved the way for women’s boxing to its current lofty position – or at least the lofty position it was last year – and has established herself as one of the most recognizable and popular competitors in the sport.

Unification fights with fighters like WBO welterweight titleholder Sandy Ryan and WBA and Ring magazine champion Lauren Price may seem natural and typically British, but Jonas believes the fighter has the right to end her career on the biggest stage possible, rather than just take part in a handover ceremony.

There seems to be an unspoken truce between the fighters. Jonas is content to let the younger generation fight among themselves, while they seem to think highly enough of her to let her live out the rest of her days fighting the fighters she helped build the sport with – rather than calling her names and trying to promote their own reputations by using her name.

“I think there’s just a little bit of respect,” Jonas said. “If you’re good enough, you let boxing do all the work and eventually you can’t be avoided. At the same time, you have to take advantage of opportunities when they come, so if you get that large chance, you have to take advantage of it. I think that’s more the case here.

“There are eras for everyone. The next generation is not my era. It’s like if someone went to the Olympics and turned around and shouted Lauren Price, ‘You’re not her era. Do your thing first, and if you’re good enough, you’ll get to the top and have a chance to fight her. There’s a kind of generational boxing that makes sense. That’s probably why we never got [Carl] Froch vs. [Joe] Calzaghe. He wasn’t his generation of fighters, if that makes sense.”

Jonas would like to get the green lightweight to begin the final chase.

Undisputed welterweight champion Katie Taylor defeated Jonas in the quarterfinals of the 2012 Olympics, then defeated her again when the two fighters met in a rematch in 2021, winning the undisputed lightweight title.

Taylor, who is 38 herself, will quietly be planning her exit from the sport. The multiple world heavyweight champion is tied to a delayed but lucrative rematch with Amanda Serrano in November and will have to decide what to do.

If Taylor were to beat Serrano a second time, a long-awaited rematch with Jonas and a chance to become world welterweight champion would suddenly become a very attractive proposition. As would a high-profile trilogy fight with her fierce rival Chantelle Cameron. As would a long-heralded “event” fight in Croke Park. As would a well-deserved retirement.

Jonas doesn’t want to quietly disappear, but she faces a frustrating wait to find out if Taylor will even consider her.

“There’s also a chance he doesn’t win,” Jonas said. “Will they have a third fight then? Probably. It’s worth it for both of them. I don’t remember how much the fee was, but for any fighter, let alone a woman, it was a lot of money. While I don’t think it’s worth it for Katie to wait, I understand why she does. She’s not going to make that kind of money anywhere else. As frustrating as it is, it’s not about me. She has to do what’s best for her. I understand that.”

“Just one win. I’d be like, ‘I’ve done this. I can hang up now.’ To be fair, even if she had won, I’d be like, ‘You know what? I’ve tried so many times, and she’s beaten me so many times – she’s just better than me.’ That would just be drawing a line in the sand.”

If she can’t draw that line herself, Jonas will let Father Time do it for her.

“I really didn’t want to pack for next year, but it doesn’t look like it’s possible anyway, so that’s ruined. But definitely before my birthday. Definitely before I’m 41.”

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Boxing

Tyson’s conqueror, Danny Williams, was “never considered” for Morrison

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Kenzie Morrison Danny Williams

World Boxing News has learned that Danny Williams was never considered for a fight against Tommy Morrison’s son Kenzie on November 9.

WBN has learned from a source that Williams was scheduled to face Morrison next month when he returns to action at Firelake Arena in Shawnee. However, promoter Tony Holden confirmed what WBN initially reported, namely that Williams had been offered for the fight.

BoxRec also briefly placed Williams within Morrison’s record on November 9, before removing the former British champion. Williams famously knocked out Mike Tyson in 2004, but has since lived off his victory despite losing his British license more than a decade ago.

Holden, who represents Morrison and is looking for an opponent for the competition in three weeks, explained the situation exclusively to WBN.

“I never confirmed William’s story and I never considered him,” Holden said. “I said no when a local promoter suggested it.”

Williams, 51, last fought in August 202, losing for the 33rd time in his career. With 88 professional fights under his belt, Williams seems unable to turn down a payday despite his advanced age.

Morrison, a power puncher who has stopped 19 of his 21 wins, will look for his next conquest elsewhere. The fight with Mike Balogun remains on the table for 2025 after it was postponed from its original October date.

Balogun, who knocked out Kenzi’s brother Trey in the first round, claimed Morrison was pulled from the fight to spare him the loss.

Holden denies this view.

“Even though this post isn’t up to my standards, I’m going to write it anyway. Mike Balogun falsely claimed that I pulled Kenzie Morrison out of the fight because I was afraid he would lose. Please allow me to correct you, Mr. Balogun,” he stated.

“The decision was not made by Kenzie. Let’s raise the stakes and make it fascinating. If you emerge victorious this month, Kenzie will fight in November.

“We may decide this early next year. If your confidence remains unshaken, we can place a significant bet. Watch Kenzie take revenge on her brother and end your career.

Balogun, a former San Francisco 49ers linebacker, responded to Holden by increasing his salary for a potential collision next year.

“No matter how fair and honorable your decision was, just remember that ‘yesterday’s price is not today’s price,’” said the 2010 undrafted pick.

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Andrew Moloney is confident that if given the chance, he would have beaten Phumelele Cafu and Kosei Tanaka

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Andrew Moloney (left) attacks Pedro Guevara – photo: Mikey Williams/Top Rank

Few people were more disappointed than Andrew Moloney when Kosei Tanaka lost his WBO super flyweight belt to Phumelele Cafu at the Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan on Monday night.

The 33-year-old Australian veteran was hoping to get a shot at beating Tanaka in the lucrative Japanese market.

Those dreams were dashed when South Africa’s Cafu delivered the performance of his life, knocking out Tanaka in the fifth round and finishing the fight strongly, beating the four-weight world champion by split decision.

“The plan was to target the WBO and really chase the Tanaka fight, but it all fell apart on Monday night,” Moloney (26-4-1NC, 16 KO) told The Ring. “I think the WBO is probably still the direction we go, but I’m not sure if they have a rematch clause or if Tanaka will take it. But after watching the fight yesterday, I would be really confident that I could fight one of these guys and win. We would like to follow this path.

“I would love to fight Tanaka in Japan as a four-division world champion. He’s definitely someone I’ve looked up to and wanted to fight for a long time.

“Last night was a little hard to watch. The way he performed, I’m more confident than ever that I have what it takes to beat Tanaka.

I assume there will be a rematch and I hope that Tanaka will regain the belt and I will be able to return to the ring and climb the rankings, and maybe this fight will still happen.

Tanaka entered Moloney’s orbit four years ago when he debuted at 115 pounds. Earlier this year, it looked like they were also on a collision course, with Moloney being number one in the WBO rankings. However, when an offer was made for the vacant IBF lightweight title fight between Vasily Lomachenko and George Kambosos Jr. in May in Perth, Western Australia, Moloney felt he couldn’t turn her down.

This decision ended in disaster. Moloney faced Carlos Cuadras, who withdrew from the fight with a ruptured Achilles tendon and was replaced by Pedro Guevara. Moloney entered the fight with a torn bicep and was largely reduced to boxing with one hand, which circumscribed his punching power.

Still, Moloney felt he did more than enough to win, and was shocked when Guevara was declared the winner by split decision. He was so disappointed that he announced immediately after the fight that he was leaving the ring, but a few days later he withdrew these comments.

It was a breakthrough moment in his career.

“Looking back, it’s a wonderful thing, but watching the Tanaka-Cafu fight made me think that maybe I would do a lot of things if I could turn back time a little bit,” Moloney explained.

“Before my last fight, I was number one in the WBO rankings and I rejected the option of waiting to fight Tanaka. But the opportunity arose to fight Guevara in Australia for the interim WBC title on a major card, and to be candid, I kind of regretted that the Tanaka fight was hanging in the balance, but ultimately we decided to stay busy and take the opportunity to fight in Australia.

“Also, the injury before the fight was another thing I thought about: will I undergo surgery, keep the top spot and wait for Tanaka, but I made the decision to go ahead with the fight with Guevara. Looking back now, maybe it wasn’t the smartest thing to do. And looking at the way Tanaka fought last night, I thought maybe I should have waited. I’m sure I could beat Tanaka and take the belt away from him.

“So I take some consolation, but unfortunately you can’t turn back time.”

It’s been a frustrating year for Moloney, but he’s still hitting the gym and his team is working to get him another fight. The window of opportunity to box again this year is closing quickly, but he still hopes to return to the ring in December, most likely in his native Australia.

“I really hope so,” he said. “That’s what I’ve been working on. I have been training strenuous at the gym for some time, quite a few months. I hope to return before the end of the year.

“At this stage it will probably be December. I’m trying to block something, but so far no luck. I’m still training away as if the fight was to take place in December, the team is currently working on it and I’m keeping my fingers crossed that we’ll be able to finish it.

“I just hope we can get out before the end of the year, get back into the winner’s circle and start climbing the rankings again.”

Moloney, who fought at bantamweight for the first three years of his professional career before dropping down to super flyweight, surprisingly, said he would even consider moving up to another weight class given the right opportunity.

“It’s a tough time in the super flyweight division,” said Moloney, the eighth challenger to The Ring’s 115-pound title. “There’s a lot going on and it’s always strenuous to plan which route to take because everything changes so quickly. I’d pick Bam Rodriguez to beat Guevara, then there’s talk of a rematch between Kazuto Ioka and Fernando Martinez on Up-to-date Year’s Eve. And then there’s talk of Bama, if they win, fighting the winner of that game in unification. The WBO seems to me the fastest way to win the title, so that’s the path we will follow.

“We have also rejected for some time the idea of ​​moving up to flyweight and getting crack there. There’s also some engaging scene going on there right now, but it’s still uncertain. I’d probably feel a little better at super flyweight, but we’ll have to wait and see what happens with Cafu and Tanaka, but like I said, I’d feel comfortable and confident against either of them, so hopefully he can make it it will happen sooner rather than later.”

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Doubts that fuel 19-year-old Benjamin Johnson

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Despite an impressive amateur resume, welterweight Benjamin Johnson of Springdale, Maryland, enters the professional ring with a shoulder injury.

Johnson will face Kevin Pantoja in a four-round fight at Rosecroft Raceway in Fort Washington, Maryland, promoted by his trainer Lamont Roach Snr’s NoXcuses Promotions. The fight will be broadcast on Saturday on ProBox TV.

Johnson, 1-0 (1 KO), spent just 2:23 in the ring in his professional debut, displaying the quick, aggressive hands that won him multiple national titles. However, 19-year-old Johnson feels an advantage, believing he is being overlooked by his NoXcuses Boxing Gym teammates.

Pantoja, 1-1, 27, has never stopped being a professional – Johnson aims to change that.

“People underestimate me,” Johnson said. “It’s been like that since I was an amateur.”

He added that this underestimation increases his motivation in the gym. Johnson is determined to prove his worth not only to himself, but also to those who doubt him or, worse, don’t recognize him. “I never felt like I was recognized as that guy, so I feel like I’m underappreciated,” Johnson said of his amateur and now professional career.

Johnson sees the fight as a key step in his career, compared to feared forward David Benavidez by some teammates and touted by others as one of the most ready-to-fight prospects in the country.

“I train as much as I can,” Johnson said. “It’s about making a statement. The way you win shows people what you’re capable of, and I’m ready to show my best.

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