Hannah Rankin has vowed to become a three time world champion in 2023.
The Luss born fighter, 32, had a rollercoaster 2022 - which saw her defend her world titles in front of a packed Hydro in Glasgow in May, before opponent Alejandra Ayala was rushed to hospital with a life-threatening brain injury.
After more than two months in Glasgow’s Queen Elizabeth University Hospital, Alejandra was able to return home to Mexico, with Hannah losing her world title defence against England’s Terri Harper in September.
However Hannah now admits that Alejandra’s injury meant that she wasn’t at her best for her world title defence, with the break since then giving her a chance to reflect.
Speaking to the Lennox, Hannah said: “The situation with Alejandra is something that you can’t plan for. There’s no way of being mentally prepared for something like that. You hope it never happens to you and that you’re never involved in that situation.
“It was horribly unexpected and a very difficult time.
“On reflection I probably wasn’t mentally ready to defend my world titles against Terri Harper in September, because of the trauma of what happened in May.
“But you don’t know these things until you try.
“I’m quite a positive person and thought I’d get back in the ring and everything would be fine. But actually it had more of an impact on me than I initially realised.
“It meant I didn’t give the best performance in September which, for me, is doubly upsetting. It really affected me.”
Hannah says she is now fully focused on regaining her world title status - and fans won’t have to wait much longer to see her back in action.
The former Hermitage Academy pupil continued: “I’m absolutely fired up for this year. I wasn’t myself in my last fight and that wasn’t the best representation of Hannah Rankin in the ring.
“I can’t wait to get in there this year to showcase what I’m really about, and get back in the hunt to get my titles back. That’s my sole goal. I want to become world champion again.
“Fight news should be coming imminently. I’m really looking forward to getting back in the ring, and it should have the potential for everyone to watch it easily - but I can’t say more on that at the moment.
“I’m looking forward to kickstarting the year and getting back to being a world champion again.
“You’re going to see the next level of me as a professional sportsperson.
“I started to see how far I could go. So far I’ve exceeded my own expectations and everyone else’s. The world is my oyster.
“It takes hard work and dedication. But this year will be my year. I will be a three times world champion in 2023.”
