Double Olympic taekwondo champion Jade Jones has announced her arrival in professional boxing with a impressive second-round knockout victory. The athlete from Wales, who claimed Olympic gold medals in London 2012 and Rio 2016, defeated Egypt Criss in her boxing debut at Misfits Duel 2 in Derby. Jones required only two rounds to secure victory, dispatching her opponent with three successive left hooks. The 32-year-old competitor from Flint made the daring transition from taekwondo after 20 years in the sport, setting herself an ambitious target of achieving world champion status in two different disciplines. Her first fight marks the beginning of an remarkable new phase in her athletic career.
From Taekwondo Excellence to Boxing Success
Jade Jones’ shift from taekwondo to boxing represents one of sport’s most intriguing career pivots. After devoting two decades mastering her craft in taekwondo and attaining the sport’s pinnacle with consecutive Olympic gold medals, the Welsh champion chose she needed a different challenge. At 32 years old, Jones made the bold decision to exchange her taekwondo gloves for boxing ones at the beginning of last year, embarking on a completely novel professional journey in a sport where she had zero previous competitive experience.
Jones has surrounded herself with expert guidance to speed up her growth in the sport of boxing. Working with ex-pro boxer Stephen ‘Swifty’ Smith at Liverpool’s legendary 4 Corners Gym, she has benefited from world-class coaching. Additionally, Jones draws inspiration from her former room-mate Lauren Price, a unified world boxing champion who effectively managed her own multi-sport career before committing fully to professional boxing. Price’s example of competing at the highest levels in football, kickboxing, and taekwondo before achieving peak performance in boxing has offered Jones a blueprint for her ambitious goals.
- Gold medals at the Olympics won in London 2012 and Rio 2016
- Training at Liverpool’s iconic 4 Corners Gym with Swifty Smith
- Motivated by unified champion Lauren Price’s success across multiple sports
- Ambitious target of becoming world champion in multiple sports
A Dominant Performance in the Ring
Jade Jones’ boxing debut at Misfits Duel 2 in Derby proved to be a impressive show of determination. Facing Egypt Criss, daughter of hip-hop icons Anthony ‘Treach’ Criss from Naughty by Nature and Sandra ‘Pepa’ Denton from Salt-N-Pepa, Jones displayed the raw power and technical skill that marked her taekwondo career. The Welsh champion’s performance indicated that her shift to boxing would not be merely ceremonial but authentically challenging, as she overwhelmed her opponent with precise execution and powerful striking.
The bout showcased Jones’ innate physical prowess and her skill in adapting her combat experience into the squared circle. Despite having no prior professional boxing experience, she showed the composure and ring awareness expected of a experienced boxer. Her victory was decidedly more than a competitive contest but rather a commanding performance that demonstrated beyond question her standing as a legitimate boxing competitor. The velocity and force of her punching combinations hinted that her Olympic background would serve her well in this fresh stage of her sporting career.
The Crucial Second Round
The turning point came in the next round when Jones delivered a devastating combination that finished the bout. Three successive left hooks proved too much Criss, with the final blow sending her to the canvas and compelling the referee to wave off the bout. The knockout triumph was decisive and precise, showcasing Jones’ ability to identify and take advantage of her opponent’s weaknesses with precision timing. This dramatic conclusion captured the essence of her boxing debut—swift, decisive, and completely dominant.
Jones’ second-round knockout reinforced her ambitious goal of winning a world title in two different sports. The striking quality of her debut victory suggests that her target is not merely aspirational but potentially achievable considering her commitment and elite-level coaching. The speed with which she defeated Criss indicated that the transition from taekwondo to professional boxing may be smoother than many observers anticipated, creating the foundation for an intriguing journey toward championship glory in her new discipline.
Training and Inspiration Behind the Success
Jones’ rapid success in the boxing ring did not stem from a vacuum but rather from a well-organized training regimen under the mentorship of experienced professionals. Since starting her boxing career at the beginning of last year, she has been partnering with former professional boxer Stephen ‘Swifty’ Smith at Liverpool’s renowned 4 Corners Gym. This partnership has proven instrumental in translating her taekwondo skills into solid boxing mechanics, allowing her to retain the sharpness and dynamism that marked her Olympic career while acclimating to the particular requirements of professional boxing contests.
The choice to take up boxing represented a deliberate choice to pursue new challenges following two decades of dominance in taekwondo. At 32 years old, Jones demonstrated remarkable courage in abandoning a sport where she had attained the pinnacle of success—Olympic gold medals in both London 2012 and Rio 2016—to begin anew at a beginner’s level in a different discipline. Her lofty target of becoming a world champion in two sports gave her the motivation to undertake this major career transition, transforming what could have been a retirement into an exciting new chapter of athletic achievement.
Training under Professional Boxers
Jones has drawn considerable inspiration from unified world boxing champion Lauren Price, who was her previous roommate and shares a similarly diverse sporting background. Price’s own path across multiple combat sports—including football for Wales, kickboxing, and taekwondo—before transitioning to professional boxing provided a compelling blueprint for success. This guidance provided by someone who had already traversed a similar path proved extremely valuable, offering actionable advice and mental support as Jones started her own boxing career with resolve and self-assurance.
- Training at 4 Corners Gym under coach Stephen ‘Swifty’ Smith’s specialized coaching
- Drawing mentorship from unified world champion Lauren Price’s cross-sport expertise
- Leveraging 20 years of Olympic taekwondo experience to professional boxing techniques
Lofty Objectives in a New Sport
Jones’ decision to pursue boxing came with a strikingly ambitious objective: to become a world champion in multiple sports. This ambitious target served as the main catalyst behind her move out of taekwondo, where she had already achieved the competition’s greatest achievements. At 32 years old, rather than relying on her Olympic laurels, Jones decided to test herself in an completely different arena, showcasing the competitive fire that had shaped her two-decade career in taekwondo. Her goal demonstrates not merely a wish for a new beginning, but a commitment to establish her legacy as one of sport’s most versatile and skilled competitors across multiple disciplines.
The journey to world championship status in boxing offers a substantially different challenge from her prior accomplishments. Unlike taekwondo, where Jones had spent decades mastering technique and developing proficiency, she enters the boxing world as a relative newcomer competing against fighters with lengthy competitive histories. However, her impressive debut showing—a second-round KO victory featuring three successive left hooks—suggests she possesses the innate ability and technical foundation necessary to move swiftly through the ranks. If Jones can keep this momentum while further refining her boxing skills under professional guidance, her lofty dual-title ambition may prove far more achievable than initially appeared.