Kiwi boxer Mea Motu is a world champion but the title hasn't quite set in yet.
Motu beat Canadian Tania Walters with a comfortable unanimous decision last night to claim the IBO super bantamweight belt but the new silverware - which she dubbed "just a trophy" - didn't get any special treatment.
"I left it in the boot," she told media with a grin today.
"It still hasn't hit me. Coming here today and you guys saying, 'world champion', it's slowly hitting me now but at home and at the gym, I'm just Mea Motu.
"I don't change for no one - I just carry on being me."
That's not to say she doesn't appreciate the gravity of last night's result though.
Motu's title opens her up to fighting bigger fights abroad against other world champions with more prestigious belts which trainer Jesse Peach said they will be pushing for immediately.
"We want all the belts. We've got one, but there's four more to go," Peach said.
"[Promoter] Dean Lonergan needs to get those belts now. We want those belts now. We're not waiting. If Dean wants Mea Motu, he needs to get those belts."
Motu said the thought excites her.
Motu won the IBO super bantamweight title with a comfortable unanimous decision win but she's already got her eye on more prestigious belts. (Source: 1News)
"I want the next belt, I'll keep growing," she said.
"[Last night] was a learning curve for me but that's how I get better. It's learning and having the hardest fights is what's going to lead me to become the best.
"I don't want it to be easy. I want it to be hard because I want to grind and I want to make it but I want it to be worthy that I worked hard for that and I don't want it to be easy because nothing in life is easy."
'I already felt like a champion'
It's a life motto the mother of five has championed her entire boxing career, having gotten into the sport after getting out of a violent relationship.
In less than three years, Motu has boxed her way to a 16-0 record with six knockouts and four national titles as well as last night's world title now on her resume.
Peach said Motu's boxing career was only just beginning though.
"Everyone keeps going on about the journey but her journey is just starting," he said.
"Her boxing is the journey now. That old stuff is gone now. Last night was the start of Mea Motu."
Peach was the first to comfort an overwhelmed Motu after she was announced the winner of last night's fight, falling to her knees in tears with the belt around her waist.
"When they were calling the results, I didn't even know who was winning because I wasn't even listening," she recalled.
"I already felt like I had won because I had let everyone know who I am. I felt like I was a world champion because I already have people out there supporting me and all it takes is to save one life.
"If I can save one life in this day and age and help a child that's going through mental health, I feel like a champion. I didn't need a title to feel like a champion. I already felt like a champion.
"I just wanted to show everyone out there that no matter what struggle you're going through, you can accomplish anything."
With the potential for more world titles on the horizon, there's still plenty more for Mea Motu to accomplish.
SHARE ME