Ginny Fuchs: "I still box because there is nothing in my life that is more of a passion for me."
It was a drunken night out in Liverpool. A cold winters night. There was a curry. There was the obligatory alcohol. The retreat back to the fight hotel from that quite delightful Merseyside Indian establishment should have been one of safety. But there was a former NFL punter in the party. There was also a former Olympic boxer. The alcohol consumed had affected judgement and distance.
I had the not so bright idea of testing who had the tighter grip. The NFL star or the former Olympic boxer and now an undefeated world title contender. The American footballer went first. It was an incredibly tight grip, but I knew that he held back. I was thankful for that.
But the boxer didn't hold back quite as much. The southpaw heavy left hand was unleashed with some force. The red wine had taken over. But I did wonder if she enjoyed slapping down her hand on my unprotected skull a little too much. It was a different version of Power Slap. And a painful one. At least for me. Dana White would have been proud. I regretted my inquisitive side almost immediately.
Ginny Fuchs was probably just happy to hit someone again. A case of wrong place wrong time. A stupid after-party request that left me in little doubt that I am a writer and not a fighter.
Fuchs had been left frustrated by her lack of activity in recent times. Three fights since she turned professional in 2022 were hardly a resume of contentment. Talented, but so far unfulfilled. There had been talk. But little reward. A fighter in town to support her friend Mikaela Mayer, who was challenging Natasha Jonas for her IBF world welterweight title the very next day. Fuchs just wanted a fight of any description. Fuchs wanted to be on that Liverpool card. But the top of my head was all she had to hit that weekend.
"I still box because there is nothing in my life that is more of a passion for me," Fuchs told me seven months on. Despite everything, Fuchs still firmly believes everything will fall into place for her.
"Being a boxer isn't an easy life, but it's exciting and challenging. I feel like I would rather be doing this than anything else right now. I like how it pushes me to do what most people can't. I'm part of that 1%, and that makes me feel like my life means something."
Fuchs desperately wants a resume that means something. We've seen more than a few glimpses of her undoubted talent in those three fights. The potential is there. All she needs is the opportunity. Finally, that opportunity will come to fruition this weekend in Los Angeles.
Adelaida Ruiz and Fuchs will trade blows for the WBC Interim super-flyweight title. A gateway to the one that really matters. A fight that Fuchs says will give her leverage for bigger things.
At 36, the fight has come at the right time for her. You sense it was a case of now or never for the former Olympian. She couldn't afford to have more time in boxing's version of cold storage. Despite everything the sport has thrown at her, or maybe more accurately, the lack of anything thrown at her, Fuchs never lost hope that her luck would change. It is her first 'proper' fight in over a year, Fuchs will be looking to make up for lost time on Saturday night. Her lofty ambitions are still very much in place.
"I can't imagine walking away anytime soon even though it's been financially hard for me, I'm willing to still sacrifice that right now." Fuchs says of those hard recent times. A win over Adelaida Ruiz changes everything.
Photo Credit: Melina Pizano/Matchroom
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