West Midlands' Ebonie Cotton reveals how she escaped adversity as she prepares to make her professional boxing debut on Saturday, June 14th in Wolverhampton.
A former dancer and model, Cotton will step through the ropes for the first time as a pro on BCB Promotions’ highly anticipated ‘Bragging Rights’ event.
"I’m feeling grateful for the opportunity and really excited," said the 30-year-old from Rowley Regis. "I can’t wait to get in there. I’ve been training constantly twice a day, and my first fight camp has gone amazingly. I have had great sparring with Katie Healy, Sian O’Toole, Mia Holland, and Gabrielle Strikaitye.
"It’s humbling getting the chance to share the ring with these boxers who have already achieved so much, and I’m aiming to do the same. Sian has become a close friend of mine, and we have some great times in the gym."
Cotton's journey into professional boxing is a testament to the transformative power of the sport. Like so many others before her, she believes that boxing has saved her life.
"I truly believe that boxing saved my life. I was living in Australia, and the short version of the story is I was in a bad relationship and was in an abusive, negative place. I had stopped dancing, and I was in a relationship, and when that ended, I went through a period of real difficulty. Boxing was something I just fell into.
"I was doing CrossFit at the time and met the Olympic boxer Luke Jackson and then started doing sessions hitting the pads, and for the first time in a long time, I felt like me again. It lit a spark in me, and that carried on, and boxing became an obsession."
Cotton travelled for a long period of time, "I left England when I was 17 and moved to Greece, and I left again when I was 21 and moved to Hong Kong, Singapore, and Australia."
Upon returning to the UK, Cotton met trainer Ryan Davies, who introduced her to BCB Promotions.
"It was a great move for me," she affirmed. "The gym is like a family, and I love the environment and how busy it is, and for me, the gym is peace in the chaos."
Despite a brief amateur career with a couple of white collar fights added in, Cotton's dedication and potential led to the decision to turn professional earlier this year.
"After my last amateur fight, Ryan and Errol Johnson had been talking, and they said that they thought now would be the right time to turn pro," Cotton revealed.
"It’s a great opportunity for me to debut on such a good card and to have so many people come out and support me. I appreciate them so much and feel so grateful. I am going to go out there, enjoy it and make a statement on June 14th."
Cotton has already shared plans to win a Midlands Area title as soon as possible.
The 'Bragging Rights' card features a thrilling line-up, including two highly anticipated Midlands Area Title fights and an unbeaten quintet in action.
Tickets for 'Bragging Rights' are priced at £45 for standard admission and £80 for VIP ringside. Fans can purchase tickets by emailing [email protected].