Molly McCann leaves UFC for professional boxing, takes pay cut to chase world title

Molly McCann, the former UFC flyweight known as “Meatball,” will make her professional boxing debut on Saturday, six months after retiring from mixed martial arts and more than 15 years after she last competed in a ring as an amateur.

McCann has signed a 10-fight deal with Matchroom Boxing and admits she is taking a significant pay cut to pursue a long-held ambition: becoming a boxing world champion within eight bouts. "Since I was a little girl, my dream was to be a world champion in boxing," she said in an interview with BBC Sport. "I'm not here to believe people can put down my dreams and ambitions and what I want to be. I kind of let that happen in the MMA world and now it's time to take back who little Molly was and why she started fighting."

McCann said money was not the primary reason for the switch. While high-profile crossovers such as former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou have earned large paydays in boxing, McCann said she wanted to respect the sport and do "proper, pure boxing." She acknowledged, however, that women in MMA have been among the better-paid female combat athletes and that her final UFC bouts brought performance and sponsorship bonuses that pushed earnings to around ������������������������������������������������������������

A promising amateur before turning to MMA, McCann won an Amateur Boxing Association title as a teenager and last boxed at about 19. She retired from the UFC following two consecutive defeats, saying she felt she was "not good enough any more" in the promotion and that the timing was right to pursue boxing while she still has time.

McCann trains at No Limits Boxing Gym in her native Liverpool. In the BBC interview, conducted moments after a training session in a small upstairs room, she paused to ask the gym to keep the noise down. She has worked with former world champion Tony Bellew among other advisors and says her MMA background gives her strengths but also brings challenges when adapting to boxing.

"Range has been the hardest adjustment," McCann said. "You need far more than a knockout punch to be successful in boxing." She told how muscle memory from MMA can cause her to lift a knee to block, a reflex she has to suppress because such movements would risk disqualification in boxing. McCann said she is conscious of learning a consistent jab and the different stance required for the sport.

While Holly Holm famously moved from boxing to mixed martial arts and won the UFC title by knocking out Ronda Rousey, the reverse path has proved difficult historically. McCann acknowledged that the disciplines differ significantly and that results are not guaranteed, but she pointed to recent rapid rises among some female boxers as proof that a fast climb is possible. Nina Hughes won a bantamweight world title in her fourth fight and Claressa Shields compiled multiple middleweight world titles within seven professional bouts.

McCann has set ambitious targets. She said she envisions fighting at around 8st 10lb and could face established names in the super-bantamweight or bantamweight divisions, such as Ellie Scotney or Cherneka Johnson, as she progresses. She has installed a media wall at home with six holes prepared to hold potential championship belts and keeps her Cage Warriors flyweight belt nearby.

Family reaction to the move has been mixed. McCann said her mother did not want her to continue fighting, and when the fighter told her she had signed with Eddie Hearn and Matchroom she let the call drop and did not answer repeat calls from her mother. McCann's grandmother, who had not attended a fight since 2018, is reportedly considering ending a self-imposed ringside exile.

McCann insists the shift is driven by love of the sport rather than commercial considerations. "I don't think people should be in combat sport just to make money," she said. "I'm taking a big cut to come to boxing because I wanted to do it and I love it."

She has set a public timeline for success, saying she wants to be a world champion within eight fights and harboring ambitions of headlining venues such as Goodison Park by 2026. "I haven't got the luxury of time to fall back on. It's now or never. Have I got the balls to do it? Let's see," McCann said.

McCann's debut will offer an early indication of whether her transition can translate into significant success in boxing. The sport's specialists note that endurance, refined punching technique and consistent footwork are key differences from MMA, and observers will watch how quickly McCann adjusts her style under the rules and pacing of professional boxing.