MEA Motu’s story is one of strength and courage, two traits she learned from her children after they saved her life.
Without them, the New Zealand Māori doubts she would have ever escaped the constant cycle of fear and torture inflicted by her ex-husband, let alone compete at the highest level of her sport.
And yet, as she gears up to face unified super-bantamweight champion Ellie Scotney on January 25, not only has Motu rediscovered her identity, but she now has the freedom to express who she truly is.
This freedom, however, was taken away from the 35-year-old long before she became a professional boxer.
After marrying at the age of 17, Motu spent the next 10 years suffering from physical and psychological abuse, with her husband, a gang member and drug user, attempting to take her life on multiple occasions.
But it was Motu’s two eldest children who, quite remarkably, put their lives on the line for her.
The mother of four even recalls a time when her daughter stepped in front of a knife just as she was being attacked, preventing her husband from following through with the horrific act of violence.
“I knew I was in an abusive relationship, but it was the shame and fear that stopped me from speaking up,” Motu told Boxing News.
“I lived in fear of his gang, because I was always scared of them hurting my family. It was literally like watching a horror movie – that was how [the gang members] operated.
“[My ex-husband] went from being this real nice person to falling into this cycle of gangs and drugs. As soon as he hit the drugs, he just became this terrible monster.
“It then turned to a point where my daughter showed me courage and strength, putting her life before mine when she was only about eight years old.
“[My husband] was so drugged off his face that he would lose self-control, and take his anger out on me. But my two eldest children were always very protective of me, always trying to save and rescue me.
“My biggest fear was allowing my children – especially my son, because he’d watch me get beaten – to be brought up in that gang life. So, I had to change that, and teach them love and kindness. My family helped me nurture them.”
Eventually, her husband received a life-long prison sentence for his drug-related crimes.
It was around that time, too, when Motu began to tell her family and friends about the abuse, surrounding herself with people she could trust.
But still, even after he was removed from her life, her husband’s gang members continued to be a constant presence.
“[My ex-husband getting sent to prison] was a relief at first, but it didn’t take long before his old circle of friends continued to haunt me,” Motu added. “It only stopped when I came back to boxing – about four years ago – and they began to leave me alone.
“The trauma was still there, and it haunted me for so many years, but boxing has taught me how to love myself. [Before boxing], I was too scared to live life, too scared to go outside.
“But when I started boxing again, [the gang members] began to realise that I wasn’t their property – that I was getting on with my life and they couldn’t control me.”
Boxing is an incredible sport, in a lot of different ways, and, for fighters like Motu, it will have a deeply profound impact that perhaps nothing else can compare to.
After discovering the sport at a young age – and then returning to it during the darkest of times – Motu now has the opportunity to claim the WBO and IBF titles at 122 lbs.
But her powerful story, regardless of any accolades that may follow, will nonetheless continue to have a positive effect on people’s lives, amplifying the support for victims of domestic violence.
“Heaps of people have reached out to me,” Motu said. “Just knowing that someone like me has been through that – and spoken out about it – is what builds their courage and strength to not stay silent.
“I also visit schools and speak to children, because even they’re struggling in certain cases.
“[Abusers] want you to stay silent, so they can keep abusing you, but the more people you tell, the more support you will get. They can protect and defend you, even when you’re scared.”
Since turning professional back in 2020, Motu has remained unbeaten through 20 outings.
Not only that, but the 35-year-old comes off a career-best performance to stop seasoned operator Shannon O’Connell in the fourth round, emerging from their trans-Tasman clash in Australia as one of the most accomplished fighters in her division.
And so, Motu is no stranger to fighting on away soil. In fact, her culture and ancestry – which she only reconnected with after overcoming years of adversities – is what gives her the confidence to dethrone Scotney when they collide in Nottingham, England.
“I’m not worried [about fighting in the UK], because the cool thing about being Māori is that we have different tribes, so we’re always going into enemy tribes,” Motu said.
“I love entering the lion’s den. The louder the crowd, the better it is for me.”
