Mia St. John

Mia St. John

Born on June 24, 1967, Mia St. John is a model, boxer and business woman who was born and raised in California. She started competing in Tae Kwon Do while studying psychology at California State University, Northridge. St. John is no stranger to the martial arts, having grown up in a family of martial arts practitioners and having started training in Tae Kwon Do at the age of 6.

Despite having no amateur experience, St. John entered pro boxing in 1997. With her powerful punches and stunning good looks, it was easy to see why her fights immediately became crowd’s drawers. She caught the eye of promoter, Bob Arum, who immediately offered her a series of pay-per-view contracts, that reportedly paid her more than the regular fees female boxer was getting paid at that time. She also appeared in a Playboy magazine spread in 1999, a move which garnered criticism from several in the boxing community.

She won her first match as a pro on February 14, 1997 over Angelica Villain before she signed with Don King. By 2008, St. John had accumulated a total of 60 fights. It was also during this year that she fought and won her first fight in Mexico, bagging the WBC International Boxing Championship title.

St. John is also involved in charitable work and founded the El Saber Es Poder/Knowledge Is Power. The WBC awarded St. John the WBC Goodwill Ambassador Award in 2008.