There will never again come a big moment that will pass by Natasha Jonas.

That mindset has already applied to her upcoming IBF welterweight title defense versus former unified junior lightweight champion Mikaela Mayer. Their upcoming battle of Olympians-turned-elite level pros will top a show to air live on Sky Sports in the U.K. and ESPN+ in the U.S. from M&S Bank Arena in Jonas’ hometown of Liverpool, England.

The buzz has grown leading into and during fight week, an experience that the two-division titlist has made a point to take in every step of the way.

“As an athlete you’re always focused on the result. As time passes, you’re asked how big of an occasion it was,” Jonas explained to BoxingScene.com. “This is one of those occasions I want to remember to savor. I hated when I looked back and saw how big and monumental an occasion was and I didn’t enjoy it at the time.

Now, I live in the present and enjoy the moment when it’s there.”

Jonas (14-2-1, 9KOs) has accomplished plenty both as an amateur and pro to not be left with more memories of soaking in every ounce of the pre-fight buzz as she approaches her 40th birthday later this June. The southpaw represented Great Britain in the 2012 London Olympics, where she fell just short to eventual Gold medalist Katie Taylor in the quarterfinal round.

The two met again as pros nearly nine years later, where Taylor barely edged Jonas to retain her undisputed lightweight championship in their May 2021 thriller in Manchester, England. Nine months prior, Jonas went tooth and nail with then-unbeaten WBC junior lightweight titlist Terri Harper in an August 2020 draw that served as one of the best fights of the year, regardless of gender.

A three-division weight jump after the Taylor fight saw Jonas achieve her dream of winning a major title. She accomplished the feat three times over in 2022, all at junior middleweight where she ended the year with the WBC, IBF and WBO titles in tow. Jonas dropped back down to welterweight last year, where she claimed the IBF belt in an eighth-round knockout of Kandi Wyatt last July in Manchester.

Enough was achieved to where Jonas has emerged as among the top boxers today among female athletes.  She is a slight +138 favorite to beat Mayer (19-1, 5KOs), according to bet365 sportsbook as of Wednesday.

Looking back, Jonas is fond of all that she achieved but left with only a blur of what took place prior to each and every one of those events. The thrill of headlining a show in her hometown has not at all been lost on her this time around, particularly ahead of what could go down as a career-defining win.

“There have been a lot of firsts for me these past few years,” noted Jonas, who has won five straight bouts. “They were moments I didn’t appreciate until after they were done.”

Jake Donovan is a senior writer for BoxingScene.com. X (formerly Twitter): @JakeNDaBox