(APR 29)  It took a long time for women’s boxing to finally gain the respect it so richly deserved. It was accepted by the British Boxing Board of Control in just 1998, and had Olympic status bestowed upon it in 2012, just in time for the likes of Katie Taylor to shine.
However, because women’s boxing for the main part has always operated as an amateur sport, it has taken women fighters a little longer to find their way in the pro game.

Thanks to role models like Katie Taylor and  Shields, more women than ever before are taking up boxing, either to fight or simply keep fit and learn self-defense

All that is changing now, though, as women have adopted some of the promotional techniques that their male counterparts have long used, as well as coming up with some unique ones of their own.
Here is how certain women pro boxers have begun to promote themselves on both the domestic and world stages as they make major inroads in the sport.

Katie Taylor – Softly Spoken Olympic Role Model

For so long, it seemed as though Katie Taylor’s unparalleled exploits in the unpaid ranks would go unnoticed on the pro side of the game. However, after she claimed gold at the London 2012 Olympics and became a national hero in her native Ireland, Eddie Hearn’s Matchroom Boxing saw the potential to thrust the 5x amateur world champion's name into the reckoning of betting tipsters.

Hearn’s punt on Taylor has been richly rewarded. The star has risen to the point that she now regularly headlines Matchroom shows, where she is often odds-on to retain her multiple world titles. Taylor has been waiting for a career defining fight against Amanda Serrano to materialize and, if it does later in the year.

Much like Anthony Joshua, Taylor has used her status as an Olympic champion to remain a humble and calmly spoken champion, not needing to stoop to trash talk in order to promote her fights. Because she is allied to the most powerful promoter in the sport, and showcased on the biggest television and streaming platforms, Taylor’s measured approach to fight promotion works a treat for her.

Claressa Shields – Self-Declared GOAT

Unlike Taylor, Claressa Shields is not shy about telling anyone willing to listen that she is the greatest female fighter of all time.
Like Taylor, Shields has stellar amateur pedigree and it is only the fact that the two women are so far apart in weight that they have not been pitted against each other, although not for want of trying on Shields’ part.

Whereas Taylor used Anthony Joshua as a template around which she could build her image, Shields borrowed her self-promotion style from American fighters like Floyd Mayweather and Deontay Wilder.
Having said that, she always does her self-promotion in a way that comes across as more fun and less brash than her male American counterparts, especially because Shields has always stayed true to her roots in Flint, Michigan, a town which has had to fight its own fair share of battles in recent years.

Her personal brand will get a further boost this summer, as she plans to make her debut in MMA. After that her only score to settle is against her amateur nemesis, Savannah Marshall.

Women’s boxing has exploded from being a niche amateur sport to something far bigger, as up-and-coming pros blaze a trail which others can follow

Amanda Serrano – Multi-Weight Queen

Women’s boxing is full of understated characters who do all their talking with their fists, and if Amanda Serrano’s fists could talk they would jabber till the cows come home.

That is because no other boxer in history has achieved what the Puerto Rican has, winning world championship belts in no less than seven weight categories. At this point in her career, she really has nothing left to prove, but a defining night against Katie Taylor may have to happen if she is to truly call herself the queen of the lower weight classes.

The 32-year-old seems nonplussed about building her brand, because sometimes all a fighter needs to sell themselves is unbridled authenticity. Serrano certainly has that in spades.
Ebanie Bridges – Bringing Glamour to the Fight Game
Boxing has long been a sport where ring card girls and promo models are used to whip up the excitement at live events. However, with times changing and promoters now being forced to find other ways to turn heads on fight night, some female fighters are taking it upon themselves to fill the void.

One of them is Aussie bantamweight Ebanie Bridges, who has shot to fame as much for her eye-catching social media exploits as she has with her punch combinations.

Having said that, she did back up her showy style with a gutsy display against British rival Shannon Courtenay in April. Bridges eventually suffered a points decision, but showed that all the self-promotion aside, she is a genuine fighter at heart. Just don’t expect her to change her ways just yet.

Savannah Marshall – Silent Assassin

Marshall’s ring name says everything you need to know about this Peter Fury trained middleweight/super-middleweight.

Trying to get her to say anything on the mic after a dominant performance is tricky, although she has made an exception for Claressa Shields, who she beat in the amateurs and now wishes to vanquish in the pro ranks too.

Far from trying to push her personal brand online or offline, Marshall is content to hone her craft in the sport’s shadows. A win against Shields would propel her into the limelight whether she likes it or not.
Natasha Jonas – Going it Alone

Another Brit, and another former Olympian, who has not had everything her own way since turning pro. Jonas has since cast herself as something of the outsider, teaming up with Manchester-based trainer Joe Gallagher, who has a similar siege mentality.
She meets Katie Taylor in a grudge match at the beginning of May with either a win or a loss probably signaling the end of a stop-start career.

Natasha Jonas – Going it Alone

Another Brit, and another former Olympian, who has not had everything her own way since turning pro. Jonas has since cast herself as something of the outsider, teaming up with Manchester-based trainer Joe Gallagher, who has a similar siege mentality.
She meets Katie Taylor in a grudge match at the beginning of May with either a win or a loss probably signaling the end of a stop-start career.