This coming weekend in San Francisco (USA), perhaps the main star of women’s boxing, Ebany Bridges, returns to the ring. The Australian athlete will defend the title of IBF bantamweight champion and the spectacular blonde will compete with Avril Mathie.
Bridges can already be considered a full-fledged world boxing star, his fights are always anticipated and he is trying to conquer new territories. Of course, Ebani is attracted not only to his fights, but also to what happens before them. The Australian puts on a show at the weigh-ins, she doesn’t mince words about her rivals and effectively monetizes her brilliant appearance: “I’m a boxer, but I fight twice a year. Two salaries a year is nothing. “I don’t make millions like boxing men, so I would be foolish not to maximize what I can earn elsewhere.”
Everything you need to know about the Bridges tournament
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Ebany has been pursuing his dream of being in the ring for a long time and has been practicing martial arts since he was five years old. When she was a teenager, she herself admitted that she went through real hell: “The period from 13 to 18 years old is bad for me. My best friend committed suicide, my boyfriend died. I plunged into darkness: I started taking drugs, I got involved with bad company. But with the help of my parents I got out of there. At 18 I decided that I needed to change my life.”
Ebony Bridges
Photo: Getty Images
Bridges actually turned her life around and started bodybuilding, while working part-time as a ring girl. She could not compete in boxing, since at that time women’s fights were prohibited in Australia. However, everything turned out well in bodybuilding, and then Thai boxing and kickboxing also appeared in the athlete’s life. Only in 2016 did she start boxing and in two years she won 26 of 30 amateur fights.
At the same time he studied and worked. Bridges has two advanced degrees. He completed a bachelor’s degree in mathematics and a master’s degree in pedagogy. This to a certain extent predetermined her type of activity: she began teaching mathematics, but she combined this with working in a bar and being a bodybuilding instructor, writing programs for other athletes. All this despite the fact that Ebany did not abandon her training.
Now he admits that he feels bad remembering those moments, but points out that he did all this solely of his own free will: “I am a shining example of a person who does not look for excuses. You will never hear me say that I can’t train or perform a task. If you can’t do something it’s because you don’t want it bad enough. I wanted to make money, box and get a title, so I looked for ways to fit it all in. So I had to stop sleeping, traveling and shopping.”
By the way, Ebani worked as a teacher for a long time. Even after beginning a professional career, she was very grateful for the support she received there: “I am lucky to work at a very understanding school that supports me. The children like that I do boxing. When I come back after the fights, they are delighted, they ask thousands of questions and that is why the first lesson is a bit unproductive. It’s great to inspire kids and I always give what they call motivational speeches. So it’s worth it if they see me as an inspiration.”
Ebony Bridges
Photo: Getty Images
Bridges is doing well in his career right now. His incredible stamina helps a lot. In his first fight as a professional, Ebany broke his ankle, but he did not give up, instead taking the fight to victory. In the last match he won against Shannon O’Connell, despite having a broken arm. And in the fight with Shannon Cartney, where he suffered his only defeat, he begged the doctors not to interrupt the meeting. Bridges’ record is 9-1 and he knows his career won’t last long (he’s already 37 years old), but he’s looking to make the most of it.
Ebani’s rivals do not like his scandalous behavior. Often they themselves start to speak badly, but they invariably receive a response. O’Connell criticized Bridges for her appearance and called her a cow: “I didn’t like the way Ebany acted. I have a 15-year-old daughter and if I did what Bridges does, it would basically be advice to my daughter: “Take off your clothes and you can get whatever you want in life.” This cow is a fat bitch. It can’t be that she only weighed 55kg this morning.”
Bridges won, defended her title and joked, “I have to say she looked pretty good for a sleazy stripper.”
A look back at Bridges’ last win
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Bridges is an unreal beauty! She arrived at the weigh-in half naked and then punched her opponent.
In general, Ebany doesn’t mind those things. She was once a victim of bullying and when she taught at school, she also taught special classes for children who suffer from self-esteem or anxiety problems. Bridges is not going to change: “The public likes me, I like to show myself at the weigh-in. 90% of boxing fans are men, why not take advantage of that? Why shouldn’t I be proud of the body I put 10 years of bodybuilding into?
Ebony Bridges
Photo: Martin Rickett/Getty Images
However, remember that there are not even nude photos on their Onlyfans account: “Many athletes register on Onlyfans and publish exclusive content. To me it’s just an expanded version of how I live. Photos that do not appear on other social networks. The only reason I haven’t done this before is because of school work.”
Bridges has already secured a solid income, but his goals go beyond profits. She wants to do everything possible to popularize women’s boxing and she wants to be considered a people’s champion, like Arturo Gatti. Ebani already has enough followers and she can take another step towards another big goal in the coming days.
