Desley Robinson has defied those odds, winning won seven straight fights en route to becoming the unified middleweight champion. On Saturday she'll make her third defense as unified champion against Tamm Thibeault in the co-main event of MVPW 05 on ESPN at Caribe Royale.

The Ring title will also be on the line for Robinson vs. Thibeault.

Boxing was one of many things Robinson had to balance in the beginning of her career. The Australian juggled various jobs. She was a full-time concreter, a personal trainer and a cleaner, all while raising three children as a single mother.

After consecutive decision defeats to now-unified titleholders Lani Daniels in December 2023 and Kaye Scott in March 2024, Robinson felt she was capable of far more than she had shown through eight fights.

“Absolute madness,” Robinson told The Ring of the juggling act she had to do. “As a single mother, you have no choice. The kids only have me to depend on financially, and everything is dependent on me. I don't get any help. If I don't do what I do, then nothing gets done.”

She posted an advertisement on Facebook in early 2023 seeking a sponsor so she could focus on boxing. By chance, an old friend of hers, Jim Valery, who runs New Style Developments, a boutique property development company in Australia, saw the post. Valery offered to sponsor her, and not long after, other sponsors got behind Robinson, which allowed her to focus solely on boxing.

Robinson’s run has included avenging her defeat to Scott by unanimous decision nearly nine months after their first fight to win the vacant IBF middleweight title. One fight later, she beat Chloe Chaos in April 2025 for the vacant WBO title to become the unified champion.

Robinson, The Ring’s No. 1-ranked middleweight, has made two defenses as the IBF and WBO champion, the latest of which was a unanimous decision over Mary Spencer on May 30.

“Everyone has their struggles. Everyone has a story, but it's how we overcome it and what we do to get over the things that matter. It's what we do with our stories,” Robinson said. “I just want to prove and show women, mothers [and] men that if they've got a goal, they can achieve it.”

Robinson now faces Thibeault (4-0, 3 KOs), a two-time Canadian Olympian. Thibeault, 29, hasn’t fought beyond the fifth round and is coming off a first-round stoppage of Cristina Mazzotta on September 27.

Thibeault, The Ring’s No. 3-ranked middleweight, boasts an impressive and extensive amateur pedigree. However, Robinson feels her experience will give her a decisive edge, and believes the 5-foot-10 southpaw will face a completely different ballgame if the fight reaches the later rounds.

“She's going to be a tricky opponent,” Robinson said. “She's tall. She's long. She's smart. She's got experience in the amateurs, but this is a very different fight for her to fight. I've done the long rounds, and I've been tested. I've been put up in the hard fights. I've never taken easy fights. I personally think after four rounds, she's going to be in deep water.”

The middleweight division is at the forefront on Saturday and next week on August 15. Scott (5-1-1), who holds the WBA and WBC titles, faces five-division titleholder and three-division undisputed champion Claressa Shields at State Farm Arena in Atlanta, live on DAZN.

While Robinson knows she’s facing a tall task in Thibeault, she knows what could lie ahead, where it’s a trilogy with Scott or facing Shields (18-0, 3 KOs).

“I fight anyone, anywhere, anytime and I've always done that,” Robinson said. “Get this fight out of the way first, and then we'll focus on what's next. I'm keen for what's next to come, but my priority is this fight.”