April Napthine: “My professional debut was so much fun. I thought I would be more nervous than I was. I just felt so ready and so confident.”

April Napthine: “My professional debut was so much fun. I thought I would be more nervous than I was. I just felt so ready and so confident.”

Mount Eliza is described as a little seaside suburb on the Mornington Peninsula in Melbourne, Victoria. An estimated population of just under 20,000. April Napthine grew up there and describes her upbringing as quiet. An area that is more known for its love for cricket, but Napthine found basketball before a complete left turn that saw a completely different sport come into her life.

“I grew up playing basketball,” Napthine told me over Zoom. “That was my sport. It wasn’t until I left High School that I got into boxing.”

Once her basketball life had run its natural course, thoughts of trying the Noble Art had been present for some time Napthine relayed to FightPost.

“I had always thought about doing it because it would have been something new and different. I had stopped playing basketball, and I needed something else to do. I did a PT class, and I just fell in love with the sport, and before I knew I was fighting after about 6-8 months of starting.”

Napthine was no stranger to physical exercise. A keen long-distance runner, she was fitter than most. But her first-ever sparring session gave her a quick realisation that her new sport was very different from anything that had come before.

“I can remember my first spar,” Napthine says. “I did one-two minute round, and my heart rate just blew up. I had done a marathon and a lot of half marathons, so I knew I was fit. But once you get inside a boxing ring, it’s totally different.”

It was love at first sight for the flyweight hopeful. Boxing is addictive, a sport that often takes hold of you, even in the early embryonic moments of entering the sport. April Napthine was no different. A desire to get better at her own craft kept her coming back for more. A sport that gave her something that had been lacking elsewhere.

“I just wanted to get better and keep improving,” Napthine told me. “I love boxing because it’s not just a physical sport. It is mentally challenging as well. It’s not just about being tough. You have to be smart in the ring as well. There are a lot of different components to it, which I love. I love the challenge of boxing, and I like proving people wrong. I also like showing people what we females can do in the sport.”

Napthine began an amateur career, but she had a three year break from the sport during those Covid hit times. The pandemic that started in 2020 hit Australia hard. But she also started a family during her absence from boxing. Two new members arrived in her inner circle. A young family that became her immediate priority. But despite the period of absence, Napthine still had an amateur career of some note, including sharing a ring with a six-time World Amateur Champion.

“I have had about thirty-five amateur fights,” Napthine says of her time in the amateur ranks. “The last fight before Covid I got to fight Mary Kom. That was an amazing experience. She gave me her uniform after the fight. It was the first time I had had the opportunity to represent my country. I didn’t win a National Title, but I won a few State titles. I definitely still want to win a National Title because I want to go back in the amateurs for a few of the bigger tournaments.”

Once she returned to her sport, Napthine wanted a new challenge and regular activity. The decision to enter the world of professional boxing was made.

“At the start, I was a bit unsure if I wanted to turn pro. It’s the same sport, but it’s a big difference. But I wasn’t getting any fights. I was too long in between fights. I just felt I was starting again all the time. I just thought I could get more fights and more time in the ring as a professional. I wanted to keep the momentum rolling and get as many fights as I could.”

Bec Moss was the opponent for her first fight as a professional. Moss came into her fight with Napthine with four fights and two wins behind her. At the Pullman Hotel, Albert Park, at the end of last month, Napthine got off to the perfect start, scoring a knockdown on her way to a unanimous decision victory over four rounds. All three judges scored the fight 40-35 in favour of Napthine. A dream debut. The perfect start to her new career.

“My professional debut was so much fun,” Napthine says of her first fight in the professional ranks. “I thought I would be more nervous than I was. I just felt so ready and so confident.”

Napthine has to work to supplement her sport. A young family is still her priority, but with a good family support network in place, Napthine makes it work.

“I work from home, and I have a really good support team. I wouldn’t be able to do this if I didn’t have that family support around me. My mum and dad help out. So they have been really supportive.”

With one professional fight already behind her, Napthine is keen to build on her successful and impressive debut. Already, plans are being made for her second ring walk in the paid ranks.

“We are looking at September,” Napthine told me. “Hopefully, we will get another fight then. But nothing has been locked in. It’s hard getting fights over here because we are so far away. But we’ll take fights wherever we can. We will chop and change and move up to another weight division if needed.”

April Napthine has ambitions. A desire to return to the amateur ranks for unfinished business will run alongside her hopes of a successful run as a professional.

“I definitely want to get some belts,” Napthine told FightPost. “Get some Australia and Oceania titles. I think that is our goal. I would also like to go back to the amateurs and do a Commonwealth Games. I would love to represent my country at a high level.”   

I have interviewed many inspiring and humbling fighters in my nine years of operating in this boxing media space. I can now add April Napthine to that list.