Christy Martin: The Trailblazer Who Put Women’s Boxing on the Map — The True Story Behind Sydney Sweeney’s Biopic
Sydney Sweeney laces up as boxing trailblazer Christy Martin in Black Bear Pictures biopic Christy — and the woman behind the legend has a true story that hits harder than any bout. Meet the fighter who put women’s boxing on the map.
Black Bear Pictures just rolled out Christy, a bruising biopic with Sydney Sweeney stepping into the gloves of Christy Martin. If you know the name, you know why that matters. If you don’t, here’s the quick version: Martin helped drag women’s boxing into the mainstream, survived a terrifying attempt on her life, and still refuses to sit down or shut up.
Who Christy Martin is, and why she matters
Women have technically been boxing since the 1700s, but Christy Martin was one of the first modern fighters to actually kick the door in. She grew up in a small West Virginia town, daughter of a coal miner, and was on track to become a teacher. Then she started winning Toughman competitions back in 1988 and, well, lesson plans gave way to left hooks.
In 1990, she headed to Tennessee to train with Jim Martin. He became her coach, then her husband, and the marriage was abusive. Martin was also gay and closeted for years, which only made a bad situation worse. Inside the ropes, though, she was rolling, stacking wins and building a reputation.
The big step up came in 1993 when Don King — yes, the promoter known for Tyson and Ali — signed her. Three years later, Las Vegas, 1996: Martin fought Ireland’s Deirdre Gogarty in a savage, skill-heavy brawl that people still bring up. Martin won, and that fight is widely credited with blasting women’s boxing onto the map.
After that, Martin was everywhere. She became the only female boxer to land the cover of Sports Illustrated, and she was treated as the face of women’s combat sports. In 2010, after Jim Martin tried to kill her, she came out publicly. She’s been vocal ever since about women’s rights and LGBTQ+ rights, and she hasn’t stopped advocating.
Sydney Sweeney actually hit people
On the film side, Sweeney didn’t want the boxing to look like movie boxing. She told Vanity Fair she and her scene partners were actually trading shots to sell the impact, which is not the usual plan on a set like this.
"Every single fight you see, we are actually punching each other. We are going full force. I always believed that you would not be able to make it feel real if it’s a stunt double or if it’s faking the hits."
Judging by the early response from critics and audiences, the gamble paid off. The movie puts a clear spotlight on a crucial, messy, genuinely groundbreaking chapter of sports history, and it doesn’t sand down the hard edges.
- Title: Christy
- Director: David Michod
- Main cast: Sydney Sweeney, Ben Foster, Merritt Wever, Katy O'Brian
- Distributor/producer: Black Bear Pictures
- Box office to date: $600,000
Christy is now in theaters. If you’ve seen it, I want to hear what you thought — especially about those fights.