Lucy Wildheart: Former dancer targeting world title shot in 2023

Lucy Wildheart has beaten Eva Cantos (pictured) and Claudia Ferenczi on points in 2022

Lucy Wildheart hopes a background in dance will help her find the right moves to propel herself back into the world title picture.

She has won 12 of her 13 fights - her only defeat was by Estelle Yoka Mossely in 2019 with the IBO title at stake.

The 29-year-old Swede, who is based in Brentwood, Essex, takes on France's Marina Sakharov on Friday.

"Hopefully that will put me high in the rankings so I can get a title fight by the summer," she told BBC Essex.

"It would be a great finish of the year. It doesn't mean I'm going to rest in December, but I can look forward to what's coming next year."

• Listen to full BBC Essex interview with Lucy Wildheart

Facing Sakharov at Bethnal Green in the featherweight division will be the third fight in three months for Wildheart, who was involved in various styles of dancing before deciding to take up boxing 10 years ago.

"I did it continuously for about seven years, and two of them it was full-time study," she added.

"At the start it was mixed dancing, couples dancing, but then I wanted to learn properly like learn contemporary, learn the ballet, which I was very interested in - and still am.

"I wish I could do it now but I really need to focus on my strength, conditioning and my boxing to be where I want to be, but it was a big passion of my life.

"There are so many benefits I have got from the dancing, firstly the strength in my feet and around all my joints, I have very strong legs. But also the mobility, the flexibility."

Wildheart, who also takes part in Crossfit classes, won her first five fights as a professional before her solitary loss to Mossely in France by unanimous decision.

"When I first started out, I was very confident. I thought I could run to the moon and back in one day," she said.

"I had a super belief in myself but I came down to earth when I realised this is a harder game than I thought and I had to believe in myself, but also really, really work hard to try to be better."