Latest news with #SkyeNicolson
The Sun
2 days ago
- Sport
- The Sun
Amateur star dubbed ‘next Katie Taylor' had text ignored by Eddie Hearn before one sparring sessions changed it all
AMATEUR boxing sensation Tiah Ayton had her message to Eddie Hearn IGNORED - until one sparring session changed everything. Ayton - still just 18 years old - was a standout amateur winning ALL of her bouts as a four-time national champion. 3 3 3 She had an outstanding 21-0 record in the unpaid ranks and over 300 bouts altogether in kickboxing and Muay Thai too. But she had her heart set on the pros - even turning down a Team GB contract - to follow in the footsteps of boxing great Katie Taylor. And like 2012 Olympic champion Taylor - Ayton reached out personally to get herself of Hearn's radar - but to no avail. She told SunSport with a laugh: "I messaged him saying like, 'Hopefully one day you can sign me.' "But he never messaged me back! So hopefully he can message me back now." Despite the aired message, soon Hearn would know who Ayton was. The teenage talent was recruited as a sparring partner by former WBC featherweight champion Skye Nicolson earlier in the year. Watching on at trainer Eddie Lam's iBox Gym in Bromley was Hearn - so impressed by Ayton he cut a deal to sign her there and then. Ayton knew it was going to be no regular sparring session - sensing it was the opportunity of a lifetime. She said: "I had to put my everything into it, like, it wasn't a normal spar. I looked at it as like it was a fight. Terence Crawford starts training camp for huge Canelo Alvarez fight "And it all paid off, so I'm happy with it. He said I was great, he said I looked good, interesting to watch and everything." Ayton is also managed by Brian Peters, who has helped take Taylor to undisputed titles in TWO weight divisions. And Ayton - dubbed "the next Katie Taylor" - has received words of wisdom from the Irish icon herself. Ayton revealed: "I spoke to her on the phone and stuff. She was saying she's excited to watch my debut and everything, she's seen footage of me. "So it's exciting. She's very inspirational for young women to look up to and want to go into boxing." Ayton makes her pro debut on June 21 in Birmingham on Galal Yafai's undercard at super-batamweight.
Daily Mail
19-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Aussie boxing champion Skye Nicholson's blunt six-word put-down goes viral after heavyweight star Derek Chisora asked her out on a date
Aussie boxing star Skye Nicolson has set social media ablaze by delivering a very blunt rejection to heavyweight veteran Derek Chisora after he made an awkward attempt to ask her out on a dinner date. The exchange, which took place at London's Copper Box Arena on Sunday, occurred while Chisora, 41, was doing a media interview. Nicolson, 29, was walking past and stopped to say hello to Chisora, giving him a quick hug. The British heavyweight asked how Nicholson was, to which she answered: 'Good, thanks.' Chisora then asked: 'When are we going to grab dinner?' Nicholson's facial expression changed immediately and she backed away from Chisora. Super Awkward here… — Highfield Boxing 🐲 (@highfieldboxing) May 18, 2025 'Woah. Don't be coming at me like that,' she said. Chisora wasn't fazed by her rejection and continued: 'Don't you like dinner?' Nicholson fired back: 'I like dinner… on my own.' The clip, which shared widely on social media among boxing fans, has sparked a mix of reactions. 'Biggest KO of Del Boy's career,' posted one fan. 'Skye is a savage,' replied another. 'The definition of punching above your weight,' posted a third. 'If you have read any comments on anything related to Skye online, you'd know why she reacted like this. Especially when someone is filming. She's a professional athlete & won't be treated any differently,' another commenter said. The Aussie fighter (pictured) came out swinging last year as she defended two female boxers at the centre of a gender row at the Paris Olympics 'Nicholson 10-8 round,' another wrote, referring to how a round of boxing is scored when one fighter knocks their opponent down. Others thought Chisora was hard done by in the situation, with one X user responding: 'Man, she really made something out of nothing.' Meanwhile, Chisora has emerged as a surprise contender to take on IBF heavyweight champ Daniel Dubois later this year. Dubois is eyeing his next fight after overcoming Anthony Joshua last year. Chisora disclosed that he would be especially eager to fight at Wembley or the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Nicholson suffered her first pro loss in March after losing her WBC World Featherweight Championship title in a shock defeat to Tiara Brown. She made headlines last year when she defended the two female boxers at the centre of a gender row at the Paris Olympics, saying she had sparred with Imane Khelif and Lin Yu-Ting, saying, 'They have grown up as girls, as females, as women.'
The Guardian
19-02-2025
- Sport
- The Guardian
Boxing's ‘Fight Card of the Century' has a glaring omission: women
On Saturday night in Riyadh, an evening of boxing dubbed as the 'Fight Card of the Century' will take centre stage inside the 15-month-old Kingdom Arena. Headlining is the undisputed championship light-heavyweight rematch between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol, chiefly supported by the IBF heavyweight title contest involving Great Britain's Daniel Dubois and New Zealander Joseph Parker. There are five other bouts – including an all-British light-heavyweight fight between Joshua Buatsi and Callum Smith – but all of them will be contested by men, raising concern among a number of prominent voices in women's boxing. 'We've seen such a positive growth of women's boxing over the past couple of years, it would be a shame for that bubble to burst,' says the Norfolk featherweight Raven Chapman in the buildup to Saudi Arabia's latest boxing bonanza. 'It [women's boxing] has certainly slowed down over the last six months. Whether that is due to more control over the fight schedule from the Saudis, it is hard to comment.' In October, the 31-year-old Briton became one of only four women to contest a professional boxing bout in Saudi Arabia, challenging Australia's Skye Nicolson for the WBC featherweight world title. 'It's a bit disappointing that there hasn't been other women on these Saudi cards. Especially on what is supposed to be the 'biggest card of all time'. There are plenty of big fights across the women's divisions that could have been made – think of names like Katie Taylor, Amanda Serrano and big fights like Mikaela Mayer v Sandy Ryan. 'There will be so much excitement and attention on this card in Riyadh, it's just a shame that there will be no eyes on a women's fight. I guess it's down to us, as women, to keep fighting for these opportunities.' Chapman isn't the only voice in the sport raising concern. The American Claressa Shields is argued as one of the pound-for-pound stars in the women's code, and the unbeaten 29-year-old directed her concerns on X towards Turki Alalshikh, the chair of Saudi Arabia's General Entertainment Authority which is bankrolling the Riyadh Season events. 'Don't forget about the women, Turki,' she posted in mid-January. 'We love this sport too and want to make the biggest and best fights.' Malissa Smith, a boxing historian and author of The Promise of Women's Boxing, has also been vocal detailing her concerns. 'It feels like a token gesture, previously having women on the card,' she said in reference to last year's fight between Chapman and Nicholson. 'Skye Nicolson's next defence will be next month in Sydney, Australia. My question is, if she is now a Riyadh Season champion, where is her return engagement? Her promoter, Matchroom Boxing, is represented on the card, so why isn't she? 'And yes, one should concede that other fighters from the October card are not represented, but the question still remains. Why isn't she or any other women's boxing champion – especially given the smorgasbord of promoters from the UK and USA – included this weekend?' Representatives for the Riyadh Season declined to comment on the lack of female participation this weekend. There have been some positive green shoots of boxing participation from women in Saudi Arabia – whether this translates into turning professional and boxing as part of these multimillion-pound events is yet to be seen. Sign up to The Recap The best of our sports journalism from the past seven days and a heads-up on the weekend's action after newsletter promotion Chapman admits to being impressed by what she saw in Riyadh in terms of facilities and accessibility, citing 'five or six young girls training inside the Mike Tyson Boxing Club'. The only complication she encountered was regarding a lack of shared training spaces for male and female fighters – something her all-male team had to find a solution to in order to prepare for her contest. Since 2018, women have been able to drive in Saudi Arabia and since 2019, women aged over 21 no longer need their guardian's approval to access healthcare, education and state services, take up a job or make their own medical decisions about pregnancy and birth. However, Amnesty International continues to scrutinise the legitimacy of their progress on women's rights. Salma al-Shehab, 36, a Leeds University PhD student and mother of two, was arrested in 2021 and detained for four years on terrorism-related charges for posting tweets in support of women's rights. She was released this month. Chapman remains positive that she will be able to earn more opportunities in the sport and her next fight at the Royal Albert Hall will in fact be financed by the Riyadh Season. 'The money and exposure that fighting in Saudi Arabia [generates] is obviously great, but it isn't the be-all and end-all,' she says. 'I am certain we will all find venues and platforms to box on, and in some ways – like on 7 March at the Royal Albert Hall – it will provide gaps for us to gain more attention and recognition fighting at home.'
