WBC Bantamweight Titleholder Ellie Bouttell
Four years ago, she was throwing punches as an amateur. Earlier this year, she was crowned the WBC Far East Bantamweight Champion.
Back in action this weekend, we caught up with the Nottingham native to find out why she chose China, what lies behind her title-winning drive, and the dreams that keep her bobbing and weaving.
WBC Far East Bantamweight Champion Ellie Bouttell
What first attracted you to boxing?
It was actually the rather undramatic fact that it was cardio. I was doing a lot of powerlifting at the time, and I was really unfit. So I thought I needed to fit in some kind of cardio sport, and boxing was just the first one I walked into.
It was my last year of university, too, and I wanted to do more while I was there. I was very aware that I probably wasn't going to ever have this kind of choice of activities again.
Good thing I did, because that random choice ended up becoming my whole life.
What is it that you find so all-consuming about the sport?
I think I have a pretty deep desire to be the best at what I'm doing.
I'm quite an obsessive person, and boxing is the perfect sport for that; there's always a way to improve, there's always some kind of thing that you're not doing quite right or that you could tweak.
It's a very scientific sport, with very dramatic results to any tweaks you do make. There are high stakes, and you have to have real guts.
It's addictive.
Ellie Bouttell in the ring
Why did you decide to move to China after graduating university?
My major was in Chinese, and I wanted to take my Chinese as far as I possibly could—spot the pattern in my personality?
My Chinese wasn't as good as I knew it could be—I wasn't fluent yet—so I wanted to push myself, give myself the language environment. China just seemed like the best choice.
I have also been coming and going from China since I was a very young child; my dad lived in Beijing from when I was 4 years old, and I went to school in Beijing for a couple of years in high school.
So it's not as crazy of a move as it perhaps sounds—China is my second home.
Why did you feel a Chinese boxing team was a better fit for you than one in the UK?
I thought a lot about this, and I chose the team here because they feel right for me.
There were other teams that I could have chosen in the UK, but I really love my coach here, Ricky Liang. He took me through my first white collar fight, and we have a really great relationship.
I personally believe that if you can pass the days easily, then the results kind of take care of themselves. So I wanted to choose a team that I knew cared about me, that I could have fun with on a daily basis.
Coach Ricky Liang in Ellie Bouttell's corner
The promoter here was also really exciting—M23 is the biggest promoter of professional boxing in China.
Pro boxing doesn't have the same roots in China as it does in the UK, but to me that makes it more dynamic and more exciting; full of potential, rather than history.
I know it is a growing market, and that's an exciting place for me to be. I don't just box because I want to be a World Champion (although of course that is the goal)—I box because I want to have an exciting life.
Being part of this rapidly growing scene just seemed like a much more exciting choice than doing the run of the mill pro boxing journey in the UK.
And it gave you the opportunity to turn full pro...
Yes, I don't do anything else—90% of my time is spent boxing, and the other 10% is spent talking about boxing.
I take two to three classes a week as part of the day-to-day running of the M23 commercial gym—but yeah, I'm an athlete full-time. It's the best.
Weigh-in for a fight against Mariah Turner, an Australian prospect—Bouttell handed her her first loss
Boxing is an all-encompassing sport. Your work literally revolves around maintaining a combat-ready physical and mental condition.
Your sleep, stress levels, water intake, nutrition, alcohol intake—all of these directly affect your performance. Managing them is a full-time job!
Every pro boxer is different, but I personally prefer to stay disciplined year round, as a way of life. It makes my existence very straightforward, which is nice, but it's also a safety measure.
People die in the ring. There's no getting around the fact that boxing can be very dangerous if you don't do it right.
So I want to commit full-time to doing it right, making sure my fight performances can be martial art, not just punching.
When all the hard work pays off
What did it feel like to win your first title?
Oh, man. It felt like vindication. It felt like winning back, paying back all the hard work that my team has put into me.
It felt like a massive achievement, from where I started boxing. A leather slab of proof that when you work hard you can do a lot more than you think you can.
Bouttell with her "leather slab of proof"
How far do you think you can take your career?
I hope all the way to the top. I train with that intention, because I think that's the best way to get the best out of yourself, is to hold yourself to very high standards.
I have no way of predicting the future, nobody does. But I believe that if you have all the right ingredients - work ethic, a good team, and the raw ingredients of good training—then you can reach for the stars. I'm hoping to go all the way, as they say.
There cannot be many Cambridge University graduates who end up pursuing a boxing career. Do you have a message for other people looking to break the mold?
I get this question quite a lot!
I would just say there's no blueprint for anyone. You can start one way on one path, and then do a complete U-turn.
I don't think my parents would ever have expected me to be the professional athlete of the family. It's kind of hilarious when you think about it.
I hope my journey conveys that there are no rules on what you can do in this life. You only live once, right?
I'm pursuing this dream as a pro boxer because of two things. One, because it makes me happy. And two, because I can do it while I'm young, you know? Boxing is a young person's game.
I have a piece of paper on my wall at home to remind me when things get tough that I have chosen to box because it's an interesting way to spend my youth. I don't want to waste a single second of my life.
So I hope that me going from an academic pathway to a sports pathway can show people that you really can do anything that you commit to.
It's so cheesy—but so true!
Finally, what can people expect from this weekend?
Hopefully, some incredibly exciting KOs. That's always the aim.
When we're putting on a pro boxing show, it's not as much of a violent focus as people think. Boxing is a science, an art form, and what every artist on the stage in the ring is trying to do is to create a dramatic finish.
So, you can expect a lot of good matchups, some dramatic finishes, and a really well-presented event.
Shadow Hunter
All Good Fights Boxing
The All Good Fights boxing series makes its 2025 debut with Shadow Hunter, featuring eight professional bouts at MGM Shanghai's prestigious ballroom.
Headlining the event is former WBC/WBO Intercontinental Featherweight Champion Liu Wensong, alongside newly-crowned WBC Women's Bantamweight Far East Champion Ellie Bouttell.
The card includes high-stakes matchups across featherweight, welterweight, super welterweight, light heavyweight, and women's bantamweight divisions.
Rising stars Zhu Yijun and Wu Tao, light heavyweight contenders Jia Enbei and Rouzi, and Cuba's Carysney 'Mermaid Warrior' Garcia round out the lineup.
In addition to the pro fights, Shadow Hunter hosts a white-collar undercard with amateur boxers—including an investment banker, surgeon, and corporate executives—testing their skills in 10-12 exhibition matches.
Set in MGM Shanghai's luxury venue at the West Bund, All Good Fights promises a night of high-octane action in an upscale atmosphere.
Click below to get your tickets now:
Sat May 10
White Collar Matchups from 12 noon
Pro Fights from 6.30pm
RMB288-1,288
MGM Shanghai West Bund 688 Yunjin Lu, Xuhui District 徐汇区云锦路688号
[All images courtesy of Ellie Bouttell / All Good Fights]
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