Ginny Fuchs: “I want to become the undisputed champion at super-flyweight as fast as possible. And then move up, and try to do it again.”

Ginny Fuchs: “I want to become the undisputed champion at super-flyweight as fast as possible. And then move up, and try to do it again.”

Ginny Fuchs turned professional in 2022 with real hope. A successful amateur career behind her, including representing her country at the Tokyo Olympics. But the subsequent four years have brought her only four fights and plenty of frustration.

Fuchs last fought in August 2024. It was the best performance of her career. And the most important. A ten-round points victory over Adelaida Ruiz that earned her the WBC interim super-flyweight title. The supposed gateway to an even more important belt.

But the victory came at a cost. A gruesome thumb injury sustained early in the fight delayed any planned return. The politics of her sport delayed it further. Fuchs has cut a frustrating fighter while she has been forced to sit on the sidelines. But finally, that hope has now returned. Next month in California, Fuchs and Ruiz will fight again, this time with the WBC world super-flyweight title on the line.

“I have been trying to be patient,” Fuchs told me over Zoom. “I have been in and out of training camps since last May because I was supposed to fight Asley González, the girl who had the belt before. I have been trying to stay patient, but there has been a lot of frustration and doubt. I did wonder if it would ever happen. I thought, ” Shall I just move on to another belt?” It was those kinds of emotions. We got good news, then we got close to a fight date, then we got the bad news.”

“I have never lost motivation,” Fuchs added. “I just get angry and frustrated. I have never lost that motivation because I know there are other opportunities to reach the level that I want to, which is undisputed. I still have that drive.”

If fighters don’t fight, they don’t get paid. An unseen hazard of the sport. Without a fight in nearly two years, Fuchs knows this better than anyone. “The financial part of it is hard,” Fuchs admitted. “I have clients that I train, but that is very inconsistent. It’s not a steady income. I am living cheque to cheque. I thought sometimes that I might need to get a 9-5 job. I have really struggled financially, and there have been times when I thought I needed to get another source of income. But it would have got in the way of the boxing training. I have had those moments. But luckily, I haven’t had to do that yet. It’s been close. But thankfully, I have people who believe in me.”

During her somewhat enforced absence, some are under the impression that the 38-year-old has left her sport behind. “I ran into someone a few weeks ago, and they thought I had retired.”

Fuchs could be excused if she feels like her peak years have been lost during her extended ring hiatus, but the American sees it differently. “I still feel as though I am in my prime,” Fuchs says. “I feel as though I am getting stronger. I feel like I am getting better every day. So I am not worried about that. I still feel I am in my prime.”

On July 17th, Fuchs finally has her moment. The on-off saga has belatedly got over the line. 

“I have signed the contract twice for this fight,” Fuchs relayed to me. “For two different dates. But this time, they finally announced it publicly. It had never got that far before. So, I thought it was finally happening this time. The WBC told Adelaida that she had until July to fight me. I just thought, finally.”

Fuchs has respect for her opponent, but firmly believes she will repeat her previous victory over Ruiz. “She has got experience, and she isn’t a bad fighter. But I don’t think she can get any better. She is a good fighter, but she isn’t on my level. I want to make this fight way more clearer than the last one. I have been working on making sure I do that.”

“Unification fights,” Fuchs says of what comes next if she does secure that WBC bauble next month. “That’s the plan. I have no preference; it’s whoever I can get a fight with. But I have wanted to fight Mizuki Hiruta for a long time.”

Fuchs is 38, but she is a fresh 38, and there are no thoughts of putting a clock on her career. “I think I am a very durable person. But I have only had four fights, so there are not a lot of miles on the clock. I feel good. I feel healthy. So until I feel my body can’t handle it, I will just keep going. I still feel that I have a fair amount of time left.”

The fight next month with Adelaida Ruiz is only the start of this stage in her career. It’s not just a case of one and done in regard to winning a world title. “I want to become the undisputed champion at super-flyweight as fast as possible. And then move up, and try to do it again. If I could become undisputed in two different weight classes, that would be what I want to accomplish before my boxing career ends.”   

It’s been a difficult time for Ginny Fuchs. Imagine training for fights that never came. Training camps that were left unrewarded. All the work without the financial reward. That has been her life over the last few years. But hopefully, her luck is changing. All the patience could now find the rewards it deserves.