Back before Maura Higgins was apologising to Reverend Richard Cole for her foul language and earning fame on Love Island, she was a ring girl.
The stunner used to light up the boxing arenas at none other than Anthony Joshua’s big fights.
The Irish bombshell earned fame when she strutted into the Love Island villa and immediately admitted to hunky boxer and contestant Tommy Fury – brother of heavyweight champ Tyson Fury – that she was part of the glitz and glam of his world. “You’re a boxer – you know I’m a ring girl?
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“I’ve only been doing it like two years,” she said, spilling on her ring-side experiences and the buzz of the fight night crowds. Fury, whose interest had been peaked, asked what bouts, prompting Maura to drop: “Joshua. His last two or three fights in London.”
Higgins kicked off her ring girl gig with Joshua’s match against Carlos Takam in 2017, telling Daily Star Sport in anticipation, “This weekend for the AJ/Takam fight is only my second week as a ring girl.”
(Image: @maurahiggins/Instagram)
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She sensed it would mark a high point in her career. Indeed it did, as she witnessed Joshua conquering titles in Cardiff’s Principality Stadium.
Joshua clinched victory in the tenth round via TKO against the Frenchman when referee Phil Edwards stepped in to check a cut above Takam’s eye.
Despite her role as a ring girl for Joshua and even taking Fury out on a date during her Love Island days, Higgins confessed that her top pick in the boxing world is Katie Taylor.
(Image: @maurahiggins/Instagram)
“Katie Taylor, because she does my country very proud,” she told the Daily Star. “I enjoyed Katie Taylor’s debut, being a fellow Irish woman and making such strong movements in such a male dominated industry, it was inspiring to see.”
But Higgins’ talents extend beyond the ring; she’s also a pro model, known for sharing racy pics on Instagram between Joshua’s fights. Her modelling prowess led her to Love Island fame in 2019, and she’s since been the face of her own sell-out Ann Summers’ line.
Higgins has also graced the ring for Bellator MMA events and worked as a grid girl. Post-Love Island, Higgins is now in the jungle, braving everything Ant and Dec can throw at her down under.