Boxing: Jadene Treadaway gets second shot at national lightweight title

Tokoroa boxer Jadene Treadaway (in blue) will take on Cambridge’s Macy Smith again.

Tokoroa boxer Jadene Treadaway will get a second shot at the New Zealand national (Pro Box NZ) lightweight title this weekend.

She will take on Cambridge’s Macy Smith as part of the Iron Fist 20 event at Don Rowlands Event Centre, Lake Karapiro, on March 21.

It is Treadaway’s second shot at the title, after she fought Tricia MacKenzie for it in July.

MacKenzie has since dropped the title to go down a weight division, giving an opportunity for Treadaway to fight for it again.

Treadaway and Smith made their professional boxing debut against each other in December 2024, with the fight ending in a draw.

Smith has not fought in the pros since that fight, however, she won the North Island Golden Gloves Championships and is ranked second on BoxRec in the amateur division.

Treadaway has fought twice since her debut, once against McKenzie and once against Tania Barnett in May.

Treadaway said she has learnt a lot since her first encounter with Smith.

“I’ve learnt how to prepare myself better before fights so that when I’m in the ring, I’m focused and composed better.

“My last fight was an eight-round fight, and during this training camp I’ve been putting into practice how to pace myself and spread the rounds out better rather than going too fast in the first couple of rounds.

“I feel grateful and humbled to be fighting for this title again ... I’ve put everything into this camp and I’m ready more than ever.”

Aside from the Treadaway v Smith fight, Ironfist 20 will also include other professional fights, as well as amateur boxing, corporate boxing and a mix of K1 kickboxing and amateur kickboxing.

Other Waikato boxers who will feature on the card include Cambridge’s Ericka Stark, who will take on Wellington’s Talei Aldiss, Tokoroa’s Ethan Batley, who will take on Hamilton’s Aldo Monti, and Saskia Elliott, who will take on kickboxer Elleina Andrews.

Elliott made her pro debut last year and had two successful fights against Toni Moki and Natalie Mackey.

Elliott is working hard to be selected for the Commonwealth Games, and she also plans to participate in the World Boxing Cup 2026.

If everything lines up correctly and she wins all her fights, she will go to the first stage of the World Cup in Brazil in April, followed by Stage 2 in China in June, and the finals in Uzbekistan at the end of the year.

Getting past the World Cup’s first stage could land her a representative position at the 2026 Commonwealth Games, which will take place in Glasgow from July 23 to August 2.

Iron Fist 20 will take place at the Don Rowlands Event Centre, Lake Karapiro, on March 21. Tickets are available online via Eventfinda.

The event will not be live-streamed.

Benjamin Watt is a retired boxing judge and New Zealand boxing writer with a decade of experience. Watt has also been BoxRec’s New Zealand record-keeper since 2014.