BBNaija winner Josephina Otabor, popularly called Phyna, has revealed how she relied on strategy and wisdom to overcome actress Nkechi Blessing in a celebrity boxing match in Lagos.
At the “Chaos in the Ring” event held in Lagos on Wednesday, October 1, 2026, Phyna knocked out Nkechi in the first-ever female celebrity boxing bout.
In a video posted on Saturday, Phyna told comedian Egungun during an interview that she intentionally steered clear of a power contest with Nkechi once she noticed the actress was physically larger.
“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 recounted that after seeing her opponent’s size, she decided to depend on wisdom instead of anger.
“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 said.
Phyna noted that she only trained for 10 days before the bout, adding that her coach assisted her in building her boxing skills within that brief window.
She also disclosed that she switched her tactics once she saw that Nkechi was not using a conventional boxing stance when the fight started.
According to her, that observation made her understand that the actress meant to drag her into a street-fight style rather than a standard boxing contest.
“When we enter the stage to want to fight, normally my coach teaches me boxing. But as we dey stage, as we want to start, I notice say she no holds her hand like who want box.
“Na, there I come to understand,” she said. “Okay, she wants to run me a street fight because she knows they no go quick dey foul am,” Phyna said.
Phyna stated that she subsequently switched to a different strategy after studying Nkechi’s movements, with her coach repeatedly instructing her to keep moving during the bout.
The reality star went on to say that she had vowed to use the match to “run” Nkechi around the ring and “rub” her into the ground.
“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 to rub ground,’” she said.
When asked whether she would be open to facing Nkechi again, Phyna made it clear that a rematch was off the table.
“Rematch? There’s no need. In life, they say, ‘Children, obey your parent so your days may be long.’ I don’t disrespect her, so make sure no one follows me,” she said.
The BBNaija winner was also asked which other celebrity she would be interested in fighting after the bout.
Phyna named former BBNaija housemate Wathoni Anyansi and actress Etinosa Idemudia, noting that they were among those who had been “forcing” her to respect them.
She joked that she could take on Etinosa in a one-on-one bout or “use her rub ground.”
The fight between Phyna and Nkechi stood out as one of the main attractions at the “Chaos in the Ring” event, which also included other celebrity bouts.
After losing, Nkechi had expressed a desire to go back to acting, stating that she was not a professional boxer.
Phyna’s win followed Carter Efe’s victory over Speed Darlington in another bout at the event.
A friend who was there after Phyna’s victory also called her a winner, noting that she had always believed the reality star would come out on top.
Fellow entertainer Chigurl also praised Phyna after the fight, saying, “Once a winner, always a winner,” and adding that no one should challenge her.
