It may not have been the sort of classic bout that will rival the Rumble in the Jungle, but for KIIS 101.1’s PJ Harding her three-round fight against AFLW legend and boxing champ Tayla Harris was a great way to highlight the battle again online bullying.
 
The match came about after Tayla was a guest on Jase & PJ’s Breakfast Show and spoke both about online bullying and her personal passion for the sport of boxing.
 
PJ had always wanted to try her hand at boxing so with Tayla and Jase ‘The Manager’ Hawkins’ encouragement she enlisted the help of coach Cameron Eyes and hit the boxing gym, training six days a week for eight weeks leading up to the event.
 
Special guests ringside at The Third Day in North Melbourne included Tayla’s Carlton AFLW team-mates Gab Pound, Nic Stevens, Sarah Hosking, Abbie McKay, Al Downie, Emerson Woods, Jade Van Dyk, Jess Edwards, Nat Plane and Brooke Walker.
 
MP Fiona Patten, who has previously worked with Tayla to campaign against online bullying and has introduced new anti-trolling legislation into Parliament this week, was there to support PJ and Tayla.
 
KIIS FM Drive hosts Will & Woody were also at the event to cheer on both women.

 
Tayla’s coach Faris Chevalier and PJ’s coach Cameron Eyes were ringside, and former professional boxer and celebrity boxing announcer Barry Michael called the fight, alongside PJ’s Breakfast Show co-host Jase.
 
Tayla and PJ battled it out over three, two-minute rounds and while it looked like PJ was exhausted after round one, she rallied and came back strong.
 
The AFLW star took advantage of her long reach, striking PJ from afar, not letting her get too close, but PJ focused on her own strategy.
 
After a long deliberation, an extremely close match, and a split decision from the three judges, PJ was declared the winner.