Big Brother Naija Season 7 winner Josephina Otabor, popularly known as Phyna, has detailed how strategy and quick thinking helped her defeat actress Nkechi Blessing in a high-profile celebrity boxing match in Lagos.
Phyna secured a knockout victory over Nkechi in the first female celebrity boxing bout at the “Chaos in the Ring” event held on Wednesday, 1 October 2026.
In an interview with comedian Egungun released on Saturday, the reality star explained that she deliberately avoided a pure strength contest after assessing her opponent’s larger physical build.
“Everything is not by gra-gra, everything is not by ‘I too get power pass.’ Sometimes, you need to apply what we call logic,” Phyna said. “She dey on a mightier size than me. So, as a smart girl, I suppose apply wisdom and refuse to be led by anger, but by wisdom.”
She revealed that she trained for just 10 days before the fight, crediting her coach with rapidly developing her boxing skills in that short period. Once inside the ring, Phyna noticed Nkechi was not adopting a conventional boxing stance.
“When we enter stage to want fight, normally my coach teach me boxing. But as we dey stage, as we want start, I notice say she no hold her hand like who want box. Na there I come to understand say, okay, she want run me street fight,” she explained.
Phyna then adjusted her approach, following her coach’s repeated instructions to keep moving. She admitted she had fun during the bout and had promised beforehand to run Nkechi around the ring.
“I was having fun. It ended too fast. I promised her something. I said, ‘I go use you, I go use you run round, run round, run round, run round… I go use you rub ground,’” Phyna recalled.
When asked about a possible rematch, she firmly declined. “Rematch? There’s no need. In life, they say, ‘Children, obey thy parent so your days may be long.’ I don’t disrespect her, so make curse no follow me.”
Looking ahead, Phyna named former BBNaija housemate Wathoni Anyansi and actress Etinosa Idemudia as possible future opponents, joking that both had been “forcing” her to respect them. She suggested she could face Etinosa one-on-one or “use her rub ground.”
The Phyna-Nkechi clash was one of the headline attractions at the “Chaos in the Ring” event, which also saw Carter Efe defeat Speed Darlington. After her loss, Nkechi Blessing said she intended to return to acting, stressing that she is not a professional boxer.
Supporters quickly hailed Phyna’s win. One friend present at the event called her a natural winner, while entertainer Chigurl posted: “Once a winner, always a winner,” adding that no one should challenge the BBNaija star.
