When boxing is brought up in conversation the first thing that comes to mind for many is men’s boxing but there are many women who are fighting to change that. Names such as Tyson Furry, Joseph Parker, and Andy Ruiz Jr are what come to mind when talking about boxing but that is soon to change. Since its inception boxing has been a male-dominated sport but ever since the London Olympics Nicola Adams made a huge splash in the sporting world. This was the start of more attention shifting to female boxing.

The current WBC heavyweight champion is Hanna Gabriels. Gabriels is a Costa Rican professional boxer, she has also held world champion titles in four weight classes as well as ranking as the world’s third-best light middleweight by The Ring and BoxRec. Gabriels holds a record of twenty-one wins, one draw, and two losses. Then we have Franchon Crews-Dezurn who is an American professional boxer who has held the WBA, WBC, IBF, WBO, and The Ring super middleweight championships. These exceptional women are just two of the great examples of women in boxing and there are so many more. Women’s boxing has in the past been written off as not as tough as men’s but anyone who has seen some of these women in the ring would disagree.

Getty Image/AFP/EZEQUIEL BECERRA

Women’s boxing classes have even in the last few years started to increase in popularity with some gyms exclusively catering to women. Many coaches have said that they are encouraged by the number of talented young women who put in countless hours of training in order to become skilled fighters. There is no doubt that boxing is no longer a boys club as the girls seem to be charging ahead and taking over and taking no prisoners as they do so.