Savannah Marshall will be fighting more than the champion of the world when she challenges for the WBO light-heavyweight title.
The unbeaten Hartlepool star will be boxing a people’s champion at the Utilita Arena on April 4, when reigning title holder Geovana Peres puts her belt on the line.
Peres, originally from Brazil but now a New Zealand citizen, only took up the sport after being inspired by an appeal to take part in a fight night to raise dollars for children affected by cancer.
Now, just four years after becoming a professional, the Auckland girl (pictured) is the proud wearer of the World Boxing Organisation’s crown.
“I started boxing because I was going through a difficult moment professionally,” the 43-year-old told punch-lines. “I could not find a stable job and I was wasting too much energy trying to control things that actually I couldn’t.
“Then one day I saw an advertisement about a fight night (a corporate show) and the goal of the night was to raise money for kids with cancer.
“When I saw that, something clicked and I thought ‘instead of wasting my energy trying to control external factors, I will channel my energy to help people who are fighting a much harder battle than I am’.
“I couldn’t afford the costs of training and entry fee, so I asked the manager at the gym where I was working as an instructor at that time if I could get sponsored for it because I wanted to help those kids.
“She helped me with the costs and I enrolled myself. That was my first boxing match ever. It was love at first sight and I could not stop after.
“The universe has mysterious ways to put us on the right path.”
Having tasted defeat on her debut, the fighter showed her mettle by stringing together eight consecutive victories, including the New Zealand title, followed by the WBO belt, both against fellow Kiwi Lani Daniels, with her most recent outing being an eighth-round stoppage of Canada’s Claire Hafner in her maiden defence last October.
Given every one of her nine contests has taken place in her home city of Auckland, why has she agreed to journey 11,000 miles to England to put her neck on the line?
“It’s time for new and more exciting challenges,” she said.
“I’m chasing greatness and to do that it’s necessary to go to great places with great people.”
Such is Geovana’s ambition she had been chasing a showdown with undisputed world middleweight champ Claressa Shields. It didn’t come off but a match with the only girl to defeat the US legend did materialise.
“Savannah is a multiple times amateur champion, a very talented, skilled and experienced boxer,” added Peres. “She beat Claressa Shields previously in the amateurs and is one of the greatest upcoming names in women’s boxing.”
Words: Roy Kelly
