{"id":561209,"date":"2026-05-01T20:42:15","date_gmt":"2026-05-01T20:42:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/561209\/"},"modified":"2026-05-01T20:42:15","modified_gmt":"2026-05-01T20:42:15","slug":"sometimes-people-smile-at-you-when-you-hurt-them-inside-the-power-of-bristol-boxing-star-tiah","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/561209\/","title":{"rendered":"‘Sometimes people smile at you when you hurt them’ – inside the power of Bristol boxing star Tiah"},"content":{"rendered":"

She\u2019s already being touted as the next big boxing superstar, has plans to fight for a world title within a year, and hasn\u2019t lost any kind of fight since she was eight years old – but as Tiah Mai Ayton prepares for her next and biggest fight to date, she\u2019s got other things on her mind.<\/p>\n

The Kingswood<\/a> teenager burst onto the scene last year, signed to Eddie Hearn\u2019s famous Matchroom Boxing stable and was immediately touted as a future star.<\/p>\n

She was just 18, still lived at home with her parents, and just as she had when she was a world champion kickboxer at the age of ten, still relied on them.<\/p>\n

But the start of 2026 has seen big changes for the pocket rocket from east Bristol – she\u2019s gained her independence. Not only has she turned 19, and passed her driving test, but she\u2019s moved out of the family home, settling in a place of her own in Weston-super-Mare, close to the Weston Warriors gym she trains at.<\/p>\n

She\u2019s loving the independence, but not the location. \u201cI live in Weston now, because my gym\u2019s here, but my family all live in Bristol, so I\u2019m always over in Bristol,\u201d she said. \u201cI wanna move back to Bristol though – I don\u2019t like it here.\u201d<\/p>\n

Like thousands of her fellow Bristolians, who have moved from Bristol to Weston in recent years – it\u2019s a bit of a demographic phenomenon<\/a> – Tiah Mai Ayton faces a dilemma. Do you live near your work or face a commute? Tiah\u2019s is in reverse though.<\/p>\n

While most ex-pat Bristolians now in Weston face the commute back to the city every day, she\u2019s moved to be closer to the gym – \u201cIt\u2019s literally minutes away from me,\u201d she said – but would rather be back around friends and family in Bristol.<\/p>\n

\"Tiah<\/p>\n

Tiah Mai Ayton poses for a photo following victory in the Women’s Super Bantam weight fight between Tiah Mai Ayton and Sara Orszagi at BP Pulse Live(Image: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Luckily, she passed her test a month or so ago, after several failed attempts. \u201cIt\u2019s so much more free now, and all that,\u201d she laughed.<\/p>\n

Last time she stepped into a boxing ring was back in February at the Nottingham Arena. She beat up-and-coming Brazilian fighter Catherine Tacone Ramos on points in a narrow victory.<\/p>\n

It was only her fifth professional fight, her fifth victory, but the first time she hadn\u2019t ended the fight with a knock out.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: Why Kingswood’s Tiah Mai Ayton is hyped to be the next boxing superstar<\/a><\/p>\n

Since then, she\u2019s moved to a place of her own and passed her driving test – so will be going into the ring in front of thousands at the Civic Hall in Wolverhampton on Saturday having very much stepped into what young people these days call \u2018adulting\u2019.<\/p>\n

She\u2019s supremely confident about facing veteran Stevi Levy, disagreeing with the suggestion that fighting a 33-year-old seasoned pro who has won 15 fights and lost four will be her toughest challenge yet.<\/p>\n

\u201cNo I don\u2019t. I fought a Brazilian in my last fight, and I reckon she\u2019ll be tougher than this fight. And I think I\u2019ve had tough amateur fights. But Stevi\u2019s a name and everything – she\u2019s good. But I don\u2019t reckon it\u2019s going to be my hardest fight,” she said.<\/p>\n

With all the talk of Tiah Mai Ayton\u2019s prospects – boosted regularly by Eddie Hearn\u2019s showmanship – it\u2019s important to remember the 19-year-old has only fought five fights. And, because she generally knocks her opponent out or stops them within three or four rounds, she\u2019s only boxed 22 rounds professionally in her entire career so far.<\/p>\n

By contrast, Stevi Levy, a Norfolk-based fighter who has predominantly boxed in the north of England, has been boxing professionally for seven years, had 19 fights and gone through 123 rounds in the ring.<\/p>\n

\"Tiah<\/p>\n

Tiah Ayton celebrates beating Sara Orszagi with Chairman of Matchroom Boxing Eddie Hearn after their Super Bantamweight Contest at BP Pulse Live(Image: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

\u201cI’ve been watching her, I’ve watched her fights,\u201d explained Tiah Mai. \u201cAnd she’s good, I give her credit and stuff, but I just think I’ve fought better people than her,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

The fight will be televised live on boxing channel DAZN, and Tiah Mai said she\u2019s often conscious of the crowds and the TV audience, until she gets in the ring.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I think about it before, I get all nervous, and I’m thinking \u2018oh my God, there’s so many people there, there’s cameras and everything\u2019,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut as soon as you walk out and everything, you’re just so locked in and all you’re thinking about is the fight – you don’t really think about everyone else there,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

Tiah Mai first graced the pages of the Bristol Post back in 2014, after she won the TFC Cadet British title as an eight-year-old kickboxer.<\/p>\n

She\u2019s one of four youngsters pictured on page 39 from the Cobra Kickboxing Club in Kingswood, holding a belt that\u2019s almost as big as she is.<\/p>\n

\"Tiah<\/p>\n

Tiah Mai Ayton, aged eight, featured in the Bristol Post in 2014, in a feature about the Cobra Kickboxing Club in Kingswood, after winning the TFC Cadet British title, (Image: Bristol Post submitted)<\/p>\n

She started getting into martial arts and kickboxing at the age of six, and although she lost a couple of bouts when she started competing, the youngsters who beat her were soon seen off in return bouts.<\/p>\n

Over the next few years, the Bristol Post reported her successes. In 2015, she won the WRSA European title at a tournament in France at the age of nine, alongside her sister Maddie and cousin Jamarie.<\/p>\n

And by the age of 10, in early 2017, she was crowned world kickboxing champion for her weight, and got the full photocall experience.<\/p>\n

Since the age of eight, and that first kickboxing success, she\u2019s gone through her entire junior, amateur and now professional career without losing a single fight. Not one.<\/p>\n

\"Tiah<\/p>\n

Tiah Ayton, 10, who is world kickboxing champion for her weight, pictured at a gym in Kingswood, Bristol with her father Mike in 2017. <\/p>\n

She transitioned from martial arts to traditional boxing in her mid-teens and never looked back, and can\u2019t really remember what losing feels like.<\/p>\n

Since turning pro at 18 and signing for Eddie Hearn\u2019s Matchroom, life has changed and everything is a lot more serious now, but Tiah said she\u2019s loving every minute, although her new fame is a bit baffling.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s amazing to be honest,\u201d she said. \u201cI’m so grateful for all the opportunities that I’ve had. But it is so much better than amateurs, being pro. Everything I thought of, it is all just gone how I thought it would go, the knockouts and all that, and reels and everything. So, it is great,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

\"Tiah<\/p>\n

Tiah Mai Ayton knocks down Sara Orszagi during the Women’s Super Bantam weight fight between Tiah Mai Ayton and Sara Orszagi at BP Pulse Live(Image: Getty Images)<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen I go out and stuff, I get recognised and people ask for photos. And it’s weird, because it’s just\u2026I just still look at me and I’m just Tiah. I just do this cause I love it. I don’t do it for money or anything. I just do it because I love boxing and I’m just good at it.<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd then I feel like my life has changed because like now I’ve got my own place, I’ve moved away from my parents and all that. And so, I’ve had good opportunities come with it all,” she added.<\/p>\n

The boxing world is sitting up and taking notice. At the end of 2025, she made history after becoming the first woman fighter<\/a> ever to be named as the UK Prospect of the Year by boxing bible Boxing News<\/p>\n

READ MORE: Young Bristol teen Tiah Mai Ayton makes boxing history<\/a><\/p>\n

When she turned pro, Tiah Mai Ayton told the world she had three ambitions – to fight at Madison Square Garden, the iconic New York venue, to be world champion, and to fight at Ashton Gate – her family are all big Bristol City<\/a> fans.<\/p>\n

Ironically, she\u2019s already done the latter, albeit as a child in a junior event in the concourse. The dream would be to fight for the world title on the pitch, cheered on by thousands.<\/p>\n

Tiah said she laments not having fought in Bristol at all in her pro career so far – despite the city\u2019s famous boxing pedigree, there is a distinct lack of venues.<\/p>\n

Often the biggest boxing nights in Bristol for up and coming fighters are at the temporarily converted underground service yard underneath The Galleries shopping centre. It\u2019s not somewhere Tiah Mai Ayton is desperately keen to appear.<\/p>\n

\"Tiah<\/p>\n

Tiah Mai Ayton punches Sara Orszagi during the Women’s Super Bantam weight fight between Tiah Mai Ayton and Sara Orszagi at BP Pulse Live on June 21, 2025 in Birmingham, England(Image: Ben Roberts Photo\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

\u201cI wouldn’t mind doing something like fighting overseas, I think that’d be a good experience, but nothing beats English crowds.\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\u201cI would love to fight in Bristol. I’ve got loads of people that support me. so it would be great, because it is hard for people to travel nowadays, with the money and that,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

She\u2019s already a name for the bill for the TV companies, and is what they call in the sport \u2018a draw\u2019 – because she has the rare punching power among women fighters to deliver a knock-out blow. But what is it actually like to have that power? Boxing is pretty much the only sport where the aim is to hurt the opponent and render them unable to continue.<\/p>\n

READ MORE: Meet Charlie the childcarer, Bristol’s next big boxing sensation fighting for Commonwealth title<\/a>READ MORE: ‘More than just a club’ – how homeless Barton Hill’s boxing club is surviving and thriving<\/a><\/p>\n

\u201cSometimes it\u2019s different. One time I dropped someone and then I heard my coach shouting \u2018don\u2019t rush\u2019, so I thought \u2018ok\u2019, I just took my time, I didn\u2019t go running at her. Sometimes it\u2019s like that, and I take my time more because I want to get the rounds.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut then other times, if I know I\u2019ve hurt them, and it\u2019s getting closer to the end of the round, and I know I could stop them and get them out of there, I just think \u2018oh I might as well just do it\u2019.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt’s just\u2026 when you fight, you just know when you could stop someone. And sometimes people smile at you when you hurt them and that’s how you know. You know that that landed\u2026 like that landed good,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

\"<\/p>\n

Tiah Mai Ayton knocks down Sara Orszagi during the Women’s Super Bantam weight fight(Image: Ben Roberts Photo\/Getty Images)<\/p>\n

Her trajectory might seem rapid, but that\u2019s often the case for women fighters. \u201cFemales move (up) a lot quicker than males,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n

\u201cBecause in men’s boxing you have journeymen, then you have the middle, then you have the top. But with women, it’s just journeywomen, and it’s just top women, there’s no middle. So women get pushed a lot quicker and there’s not a lot of female fighters. So I’ll probably be fighting for a title, hopefully this year and maybe a world title at the start of next year,\u201d she added.<\/p>\n

First, she\u2019s got to beat Stevi Levy, and then see what happens.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"She\u2019s already being touted as the next big boxing superstar, has plans to fight for a world title…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":561210,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[41],"tags":[2560,77401,2207,8934,101,56,54,55,38254],"class_list":["post-561209","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-boxing","tag-boxing","tag-kingswood","tag-people","tag-premium","tag-sports","tag-uk","tag-united-kingdom","tag-unitedkingdom","tag-weston-super-mare"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/561209","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=561209"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/561209\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/561210"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=561209"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=561209"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/uk\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=561209"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}