Ruby Singh: “I think I can become a world champion within a year.”

Ruby Singh: “I think I can become a world champion within a year.”

Ruby Singh is no stranger to the ever-changing and diverse world of martial arts. A teacher. A fighter. A choice was made. Boxing is now her primary concern. It has allowed her to focus and grow. Australian-born with Indian heritage, Singh initially kept her life in boxing a secret from her parents. But for many reasons, Singh couldn’t hide it any longer. There are now dreams of world titles and much more. An inspiring little gem of a story.

Singh was relatively late to combat sports, and like many, boxing came into her life, having spent time elsewhere in that type of world. “I’ve done Krav Maga, Muay Thai, and MMA,” Singh told FightPost over Zoom. “I guess my journey started after university; I didn’t start young as a kid. I used to play basketball at university, and I was terrible because there were too many moving parts. So I decided to do a sport that has repercussions when you lose focus. I decided to do Krav Maga, which comes from Israel, and is high in problem-solving. It teaches you the quickest way to neutralise a threat when conflict is inevitable. You can’t compete in Krav Maga, and I wanted to compete. I was already doing a bit of grappling and Jiu-Jitsu, but the thing that really stood out for me was the boxing. I still did MMA. I trained in Singapore for a little bit. I went around the world a little bit and did some Muay Thai in Thailand. But then I decided to pick one, and I chose boxing. I have got a crazy reach for my weight class. I started to compete in boxing, but I wanted to keep hold of Krav Maga, so I have been teaching that now. One of the top universities in Australia hired me to teach courses there. I have also been teaching seminars around the world. But I am trying to focus on my boxing now to try and get a world title.”

Boxing was initially like her ‘dirty’ secret. A double life that her parents knew nothing about. “I was born in Australia. I have more or less always lived here, up to the point when I started boxing, and I started travelling around a little bit more, but that’s my home base. My parents are Indian, and they don’t really approve of the boxing. I didn’t tell them I boxed until it was very late. They are Indian immigrant parents, so they are very conservative. The only toys I had growing up were an abacus and a times table chart. So, I have always been academically excelling. I think that is what got me interested in problem-solving. But once I started to fight, I used to tell them I was going to a wedding or something. I didn’t want to tell my parents until I was sure I was good. I went to America just to check that I was actually good at it.

“It used to be the biggest amateur tournament in the world, the Ringside World Championships. It was amazing. They had four rings, so you pretty much guaranteed a few fights when you go there. I won the tournament, I couldn’t hide that belt. I used to hide all my trophies, medals, and stuff, but I couldn’t hide a belt. I told them and said this is what I do. They weren’t very happy about it, and they said, ‘You got the belt, now you can quit.’ I was like, I am just getting started. That was just the beginning for me.”

After just twelve amateur fights, Ruby Singh decided to enter the world of professional boxing. “It was hard at my weight to get fights because there were only a few girls fighting,” Singh told me. “That’s why I went to that tournament in the US so I could have a few fights. There were just more girls over there.

“I guess I was ready for it. I have got quite a lot of power for my weight. I like the idea of knocking people out more so than point-scoring. I felt the pros were more suited to me. I have had three pro fights so far, and I have had knockouts in all three fights.”

Singh is 3-0 as a professional. She hasn’t fought since April, but her return to action is getting ever closer. “I am going to head to Florida because I have trained there for quite a while. Pretty much the whole of last year, I was training there. They have got some amazing sparring partners, and the coaches are very different over there. I am planning to go over there and get back into training because I have had some time off. I want to represent both Australia and India and become the first Indian pro boxing world champion.”

For Singh, boxing is a vital component of her life. It gives her so much. “It makes me hyper-focus on what’s in front of me,” Singh says. “I have had issues concentrating in other sports, like basketball, where there was too much going on. In boxing, you can get hit in the face, so it has helped me to remain focused on what’s in front of me. It kind of calms you down in life because it gets all the aggression out. It makes you a zen person. Boxing has given me a lot of confidence because growing up, I wasn’t very confident. After I started boxing, I became more confident and proud of my heritage.”

At 36, Ruby Singh knows her career has to pick up its pace somewhat. There is little time to waste. Boxrec has her ranked 15th at minimum weight. A few more wins could push her close to fighting for world titles. Singh believes she can make her dreams become a reality within the next twelve months. “I think I can become a world champion within a year. I think I can go forward and be ready in a year.”