White collar boxers from across London are preparing to take part in the first all-female Industry Boxing event at the Clapham Grand this evening.
In total, 34 fighters will see the results of ten weeks of training when they step into the ring to compete in three two-minute rounds.
Doors open at 6pm and proceedings will begin at 6:48pm when Tatyana Petkova takes on Lauren Durand.
On being the first fight of the evening, Petkova, 33, said: “I’m quite nervous because I don’t know what to expect.
“But it should be very exciting opening the whole show.”
Nicola ‘The Nickster’ Richardson, 39, will be sixth in the ring, fighting against Leasa ‘Lunatic’ Crowe, 38, who is taking part in her third Industry Boxing event.
Richardson, who labelled Crowe ‘The Mighty One’, said: “We’ve sparred quite a lot throughout the training so I feel pretty confident.”
She added: “ I’m a little bit apprehensive but it’ll be good, we’ll enjoy it.
“We’ve all worked really hard so it should be good in the end.”
Richardson went on to speak about the hard work the boxers had put in, echoed by fellow competitor Man Yiu ‘The Senseition’ Wong, 28.
Wong said: “I learned a lot of things, obviously the boxing techniques and the skills involved.
“But I think I’m also learning about myself, he’s [Jon] got some really hard workouts that he got us to go through to get us prepared for this fight, so it’s just learning about yourself as well, you know how much you can push yourself.”
Wong will compete in the penultimate fight, facing Jarina Begum.
She said: “It’s fairly obvious that I’m slightly taller.
“I’m sure she’s a good fighter but I’d like to think that I’ve got that little bit of reach advantage so I’m gonna make use of that.”
Of her long wait to box, Wong said: “I think it’s going to be exhausting.
“It’s like four hours of me trying to pep talk myself.
“That’s going to be one of the hardest points of the night.”
Nikita Patel, 31, is competing in her first fight and said she felt her pairing with Alisha ‘Al’ Oni was fair, having sparred with her the previous week.
Oni, 24, thinks they are an even match with a lot of potential.
She said: “I’m feeling pretty nervous, but I’m ready for it. I’m ready to take on this challenge, win or lose, it’s been a great experience.”
Like many of the fighters, Oni has a crowd of supporters, including Zöe Cutcliffe, 23, who has travelled from Leeds to watch her best friend take part in the event.
Cutcliffe said: “I think Alisha will be very confident, fearless and energetic.
“She’ll knock them out, she’ll be very feisty.”
The event is expected to finish at about 10.30pm, after the boxer of the night has been crowned, and the competitors are already looking forward to celebrating.
Patel said: “I’ll probably go for a few beers after. I’ll probably need it!”
