Natasha Jonas: Impossible is nothing

In a career with history written all over it, Natasha Jonas personifies many things. Most say that she’s a trailblazer for women’s Boxing. Others might acknowledge her as the first female Boxer to represent Great Britain on the Olympics stage. However, at the heart of it all, while being the underdog throughout her movie-like story, Jonas is most importantly a mother to a beautiful soul. And on May 1st, at last, she turns her dream into a reality in a storybook ending for the ages.

When it comes to Boxing, most athletes at the sport’s pinnacle had been mastering the sweet science since an early age. However, every now and then, an anomaly like Natasha Jonas emerges with fire in her eyes, defying the stereotypical beliefs with the most powerful tool of all, heart.

The Liverpudlian was your typical twenty-year-old, still trying to figure out this thing called life. But little did she know, she was about to transcend an entire sport.

Jonas started Boxing at the age of twenty, which is considered relatively late to master such a gruelling sport. However, Jonas was what some might say “a natural,” and in no time, she proved it.

Less than five years into her journey, Natasha added five ABA Championships to her young resume. In the eyes of most people in the Boxing world, she was looked at as an underdog from her very first rodeo. But little did they know, the underdog was only warming up…

Two years after displaying her dominance in the ABA Championships, the Liverpudlian lit up an entire stadium with her smile, not just any stadium, but the biggest one of all, The 2012 London Olympics. Standing across from her that night was an Irish phenom named Katie Taylor. Both Ladies put it all on the line in an absolute barnburner, but when the smoke cleared, Taylor was declared the winner.

When Jonas was asked about that night, she said: “London 2012 will never be matched, it was surreal. I remember saying to my mum when I was four and watching the Olympics on the TV: ‘Mum, Mum, I’m gonna be there.’

The atmosphere was unique that night, and the energy was quite different. It was like an aura of greatness that had everyone in awe. It could have been for many reasons, but almost a decade later, it would all make sense…

It is impossible for the average individual to understand how gruelling the fight game is with the accumulation of endless injuries, accompanied by the mental stress and fatigue that eventually breaks the hearts of the bravest people in this world. It was no different for Jonas. In April 2015, the English star decided to hang up the gloves, setting her sights on other things in life. However, her calling into becoming a World champion couldn’t leave her mind.

“In the end, we only regret the chances we didn’t take.”

Two years after retiring, Natasha couldn’t be at peace with calling it a day before turning professional, which gets her a step closer to achieving what most combat athletes strive for, and that is to be crowned as a World Champion.

The slick southpaw made her professional debut at last in 2017 to fulfil her calling of becoming a world champion. She went on an absolute tear, winning her first six professional fights, entering every one of them with the mindset of making a statement.

Nothing builds character like adversity, and Jonas was no stranger to it. In her seventh professional fight, she suffered her first professional setback in the hands of hard-hitting Brazilian Viviane Obenaur.

If there was ever a time to call it quits, if there was ever a time to lose hopes of becoming a World Champion, the time was then. But the perseverance in Natasha’s soul is something she always took pride in possessing. It wasn’t easy, but she picked herself up, dusted herself off, and carried on the path to glory.

Following her first professional setback, Jonas got back on track by digging deep and securing three wins in a row. The win streak took her to a familiar place, history. Natasha Jonas was finally fighting for a world title in the first female World Championship showdown with two Brits locking horns on great Britain’s soil.

The stage was set, August 7th, 2020. Jonas went toe to toe with the twenty-three, heavy favourite, Terri Harper.

Coming into the fight, a narrative was built once again that Natasha’s chances of winning were very slim. However, Jonas made the walk into the ring with a smile on her face like she knew something. Quiet confidence was oozing from Jonas. Seconds later, the world found out why.

In one of the best fights of the year, most people worldwide, including myself, saw the fight being comfortably won by Jonas. However, a robbery took place, with the judges scoring the fight as a draw.

I remember my emotions after the decision was announced. I was reminded why I shifted my interest from Boxing into Mixed Martial Arts.
Bad judging and politics have been ruining this beautiful sport, and more significantly, shattering the dreams of the ambitious dream chasers in a split second.

Once again, Jonas was down but far from out. She knew she won that fight but wasn’t quite sure of what the future had in store. In the words of one of my biggest inspirations, Michael Bisping, he used to always say, “Destiny can never miss.”

There is a reason why Jonas came out of retirement. And there’s a reason why she got robbed in her last fight. It was her final character-building test before fulfiling her calling of becoming a world champion.

As I’m watching Natasha’s journey unfolding, I can’t help but compare it to Michael Bisping’s. He was given nothing but young killers throughout his career, and in his title eliminator fight against Chael Sonnen, he was robbed. Still, at last, at thirty-six years old, he stepped in on short notice for his title fight against Luke Rockhold, who defeated Bisping a few years prior. And not just that, he was a ten to one underdog coming into that fight. However, he believed that he was destined to capture UFC gold before it was all set and done. Shortly after, he knocked out Rockhold in less than 3 minutes in one of the biggest upsets of all time.

On May 1st, Natasha Jonas is getting twenty minutes to make life fair when she fights none other than the girl who beat her in the Olympics back in 2012, the undisputed World Champion Katie Taylor.

You can’t script this. Everything happens for a reason. All the trials and tribulations led Natasha Jonas to this moment for a reason, and on May 1st, she shows that impossible is nothing.