Rianna Doforo: “I want to be the best female fighter of this generation.”

Rianna Doforo: “I want to be the best female fighter of this generation.”

“It went perfectly,” Rianna Doforo told FightPost over Zoom. “I couldn’t have asked for any more.”

It was just a few days removed from her victory over Orsolya Moldovan on Saturday night at the Magna Centre. The 18-year-old ended a year-long ring hiatus by stopping her Hungarian opponent inside two rounds in impressive fashion.

It was her first fight since losing her unbeaten record to Alejandra Rojas Rivera last June in Mexico. It’s been a period of reflection for the Liverpool fighter.

“The past year has just been about growth in all honesty,” Doforo says. “I have changed gyms, and it was such a refreshing change for me. It was something I definitely needed. I have seen a huge jump, not just physically, but mentally as well.”

“It was a brilliant learning experience for me,” Doforo added about the fight against Rivera. “In all honesty, I wouldn’t change it for the world. Just because of who I have become since that fight, and the lessons I have learned, and everything that I have taken from it. Everything for a reason.”

That sole defeat on her record needs context. Doforo was only 15 when she made her professional debut in 2023 in Mexico. Doforo was too young to fight on UK soil. Despite her eagerness to test her skills in the world of professional boxing, Doforo had to fight fighters with fully matured physiques. It makes a difference. Rivera was approaching 30 when she beat Doforo last year. The Liverpool fighter still hadn’t turned 18.

But in defeat, Doforo has found new meaning to her sport. “I have looked at boxing, and I have realised how much I love the sport. Even when it isn’t going my way, I still enjoy every second of it. It makes me even more grateful for the opportunities that I get.”

“Boxing is a huge part of my life,” the 18-year-old went on to say. “I wouldn’t go as far as to say that it is my life, but it is in a very large way. I get a lot of fulfilment from it. Most importantly, it brings me happiness. Boxing has helped me grow so much as a person. Discovered parts of me that I wouldn’t have if it weren’t for boxing. And also the people you meet along the way.”

Rianna Doforo is only, but her self-belief has always been impressive in many ways. “Confidence is something I have always had,” Doforo says. “Even when I lost, I still told everyone that I am going to be the best. I have never been shy of expressing it.”

After fighting on the other side of the world in her previous fights in the pro ranks, it was a refreshing change to fight a lot closer to home. “I said to my dad as we were driving up, it just felt so weird to drive from my house to a fight,” Doforo said. “Rather than drive to Heathrow and then get a flight. It just felt strange to just hop into my car and drive to a fight.”

Doforo is looking to stay busy for the remainder of the year. “My next fight will be a good step up for me. That will be in September. I am just looking to be active this year. I want to continue going the way I am. Just adapting and hopefully, building towards some sort of title early next year.”

That defeat last year hasn’t dampened her ambitions in the sport. The Ryan Rhodes-managed fighter has lofty ambitions. “I want to be the best female fighter of this generation.”