Jasmina Zapotoczna: “I don’t mind who my next opponent is. I like challenges. I just want to fight, I am ready for anyone.”

Jasmina Zapotoczna: “I don’t mind who my next opponent is. I like challenges. I just want to fight, I am ready for anyone.”

To the masses, the name of Jasmina Zapotoczna wouldn’t have been known only a few weeks ago. The Polish born flyweight prospect was unbeaten in six fights. But only the hardcore would have known who she was. But things have changed now. Jasmina has been lost to the unbeaten ranks. But the fight that removed that unblemished status could be the fight that will be the making of her.

“I think it was a very good performance. I think I showed my skills as much as I could. I don’t think anyone expected that as well,” Jasmina told me over Zoom just ten days after her tough fight with the unbeaten Matchroom prospect Shannon Ryan. Jasmina lost on points to Ryan at the Indigo at The O2 in London. But the fight was a close, bloody affair. Two judges only gave it to Ryan by two points, which was about right, but Jasmina more than proved that she belonged on the big stage. Make no mistake, a draw would not have flattered her.

Jasmina was already scheduled to be on the card earlier this month, but when the original intended opponent Maisey Rose Courtney withdrew through injury, her place on the Matchroom show was at some risk. But when Emma Dolan withdrew from her scheduled fight with Ryan, Jasmina was offered the fight with the unbeaten super-flyweight prospect and there was little hesitation in accepting the fight, despite it being a weight above her preferred weight division.

“I was convinced it would be good to take the fight despite the change of opponent,” Jasmina says. “It was a bit of a gamble. It was ten rounds, and I was thinking how I was going to be. But I felt fit and strong and that was the main thing for me. I was confident it was the right thing to do to take that fight. I didn’t think it was a bad idea. I trust my coach, and he said I would showcase my skills and that it was a good opportunity.”

Jasmina lost very little in defeat. Her stock has probably risen despite losing her unbeaten record to Ryan. The fight which shown on DAZN, would have raised her profile significantly. A fact that isn’t lost on Jasmina.

“Obviously, I am gutted. I lost that fight. It’s normal to feel a little disappointed. It was a very close fight. But it is still good to be more recognisable now in the boxing world, and all the fans got to know me a little bit better. The main plan was to show myself a good boxer to the whole world.”

The resume of Jasmina now stands at 6-1, but the level of her performance against Ryan will surely mean her phone will ring with an invitation to showcase her skills on the big stage once more. Possible fights with Nicola Hopewell or even Chloe Watson for the European flyweight title could be in the offering. But Jasmina is keen on revisiting that fight with Courtney, but is willing to fight anyone.

“Nothing has been confirmed yet,” Jasmina told me. “Hopefully, I can come back into the ring in about two months. Who is going to be in the ring with me, I don’t know. Hopefully, the fight with Maisey Rose Courtney will take place. But we are waiting for offers. But I don’t mind who my next opponent is. I like challenges. I just want to fight, I am ready for anyone.”

The road has been hard and long. Every success hard-earned, in many ways. The glitz and the glamour of the bright lights of the Eddie Hearn show, is a long way removed from where Jasmina learned her professional craft. Fights on the smaller shows told her the fight was on both sides of the ropes.

“What we are doing outside of the ring is the hardest job,” Jasmina says of that time away from the TV lights. “Having to promote yourself and selling enough tickets. I have been in England for six years this year, and that was very tough for me, especially in selling tickets. But I was ready for it, my coach said it wouldn’t be easy. Hopefully, after my last fight with Matchroom, it will be a little easier to find sponsors now. So, taking that opportunity with Shannon Ryan might be more beneficial than a lot of people think.”

Jasmina is now one of the lucky ones. Since her move to England, she has done a number of jobs to make ends meet. Warehouse jobs and other similar types of work was a means to an end. Training and working is always problematic. But thankfully, Jasmina Zapotoczna now has that light. She is now a full time professional boxer. A development that could change everything.

Before the move to England nearly six years ago, Jasmina had a limited amateur career. A short spell on the Polish national squad was cut short by something that hits harder than any opponent inside the ring could ever do. Reality.

“I used to fight as an amateur in Poland. I had a short run in the Polish amateur team. It was a few months before I moved to England. I started boxing when I was twenty, so it was quite late. I was living on my own, and I had to pay my own bills and everything. So I had to think about other stuff than boxing. I couldn’t sacrifice everything for my sport. I wasn’t number one in my weight category, so I had to pay for everything. Sometimes, twice a month, we had a team training camp, but I still had to work and pay my bills, and I just couldn’t afford it, so I had to decide to leave it. So for work, I decided to move to England and I didn’t plan to box again while I was here.”

Thankfully, Jasmina did find boxing again. She might even find something more.

“I’m dreaming, and obviously, I am trying to get to the top. I want to become a world champion,” Jasmina told FightPost. “I am thinking of the European title as well, and I will do my best to reach the top. I am not stopping. I am even more determined now.”

Time will tell if Jasmina Zapotoczna can win a world title. But her impressive performance against the talented Shannon Ryan told us that ambition is anything but impossible. She is most definitely a fighter who could very well being going under the radar. Many more recognisable names, would do well not to sleep on her.

Photo Credit: Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing