Natasha Jonas

Natasha Jonas, born on June 18, 1984, in Liverpool, Merseyside, United Kingdom, embarked on her boxing journey in 2005. She quickly established herself as a formidable amateur, securing five ABA Championships in the 64kg Division for Liverpool’s Rotunda ABC by 2010. In 2009, Jonas became the first female boxer to compete for GB Boxing, earning a gold medal at the 2009 Women’s European Union Amateur Boxing Championships in Pazardzhik, Bulgaria. Her amateur career reached a significant milestone in May 2012 when she made history in Qinhuangdao, China, by becoming the first British female boxer to qualify for an Olympic Games, taking home a bronze medal from the 2012 AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championships. She later competed at the 2012 London Olympics, facing Katie Taylor in the quarter-finals, and also secured a silver medal at the 2014 European Championships.

Jonas made her professional boxing debut on June 23, 2017, with a first-round stoppage victory against Monika Antonik. Her professional journey saw significant career progression, including challenging for the WBC and IBO female super-featherweight titles in August 2020, resulting in a split draw against Terri Harper. In May 2021, she faced her former amateur rival Katie Taylor for unified lightweight titles, losing by unanimous decision. A turning point occurred on February 19, 2022, when Jonas won her first professional world title, the vacant WBO female super-welterweight championship, by stopping Chris Namús in the second round. She further unified titles in September 2022, defeating Patricia Berghult for the WBC female super-welterweight title, and added the IBF and The Ring female super-welterweight titles in November 2022 by beating Marie-Eve Dicaire. In 2022, Jonas became the first woman to win the British Boxing Board of Control’s British Boxer of the Year award.

Her career continued to advance as she became a two-weight world champion on July 1, 2023, claiming the vacant IBF female welterweight belt after stopping Kandi Wyatt. In January 2024, she successfully defended her IBF welterweight title against Mikaela Mayer in a split decision. December 2024 saw Jonas become a unified world champion for a second time, defeating Ivana Habazin for the WBC female welterweight title. Beyond her fighting career, Jonas made history in 2023 as the first black woman to receive a manager’s license from the British Boxing Board of Control. Her contributions to boxing and the Liverpool community were recognized with an MBE in the 2025 Birthday Honours.