How Philly’s Natalie Dove went from shadow boxing in her sleep to fighting with Jake Paul’s promotion

Philadelphia native Natalie Dove eats, breathes, and sleeps (literally) boxing.

The 23-year-old remembers her mom picking her up from Villa Joseph Marie High School to take her to the gym to train. Dove would sneak in a 20-minute nap before practice but would wake up in a sweat, throwing punches that made her body jump out of the seat.

“My mom was like, ‘Are you OK? You were just punching the air.’ And I was like, ‘No, I swear I’m sleeping,’” Dove said.

“The closer I get to fight day is when it’s happening because when I’m dreaming, I literally envision my entire fight from beginning to end of how I want it to go. And I guess my body just takes over with it. But I think it’s kind of cool. Like, your body just knows when you’re ready to perform, and it’s just a constant thought in my head.”

Now, another fight is approaching. Dove is preparing to face Randee Lynn Morales on Saturday in her second fight under Jake Paul’s MVP Promotions. But before her walkout in Orlando, the boxer reflected on her career and her Philly roots.

Dove’s earliest boxing memories came from hitting the speed bag at Front Street Gym, the historic venue featured in Creed and Rocky, when she was 11 years old. Her grandfather, Hector Rios, would take Dove and her three cousins to the gym for self-defense training. When she was 14, she realized she wanted to pursue boxing as a career.

“I was training one day, and someone came up to me and they were like ‘Are you going to train for the Olympics?’ And I was like ‘Yeah, I think I am going to train for the Olympics,’” Dove said. “I had no idea what that meant. But after I heard that, it kind of put a goal in my mind that I want to be really good. I just fell in love with the process of it.”

Rios, who also was a professional boxer, didn’t expect Dove to take the sport so seriously. As a protective grandfather, he was hesitant when he found out she wanted to start sparring.

“I think what changed his mind was my first tournament,” Dove said. “It was in Florida, and I did really well. I was competing against a fighter that had over 60 fights, and I was in my fourth fight, and I beat her. And he was just looking at me like, ‘All right, I think you can actually do this.’”

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Dove started her training at Philly’s Next Champ boxing gym. She then moved to Coach Anthony’s Boxing Gym in Florence, N.J., before switching to a closer option, Kaoz Boxing, where she is taught by Bob Kane.

Dove currently is splitting her training sessions between two states after recently buying a house in Georgia — she trains pressure and power with Kane in Philly and focuses angles and outside work with DJ Walton in Georgia. Although she’s away from Philly right now, she credits the city for her toughness.

“I think [my Philly roots] make me tough,” Dove said. “When I train in Philly, I’m in a gym full of grown men that are constantly messing with each other. They talk [expletive] the entire time. Obviously, it’s going to be my turn at some point. I think that made my skin kind of tough. I really don’t care what anyone says. If anything, I’m probably the biggest bully in the gym. I think it just made me tougher and it made boxing fun for me.”

That Philly toughness is what inspired her “No Love” nickname.

“It’s a mixture between the city of brotherly love and then just the toughness that I bring to the table,” Dove said. “I didn’t come up with it — DJ came up with it. We were literally at a restaurant, like, ‘What are we going to call you?’ And I was like, ‘I don’t know, but it has to do something with Philly.’ And he kind of pieced it together.”

Dove has always been a competitor, whether in soccer, softball, flag football, or basketball. But she discovered that boxing was a much better fit.

“I didn’t like team sports because you always have a couple people that are OK with losing,” Dove said. “And I’m very competitive. So when it came to actually winning a game, I wasn’t OK with losing. And some people on the team would be like, ‘I don’t want to play today.’ And for me, this is my entire day. This is what I came here to do. So I just hated team sports.”

Her “be the best” mentality led her to Colorado Springs, Colo., where she trained as a member of Team USA at the Olympic Training Center from ages 16 to 18 to try to qualify for the 2020 Olympics.

“I had my eyes set on the 2020 Olympics, and the qualification process was the hardest part,” Dove said. “I had just turned 18. I was the youngest one to try to qualify, and I lost in the last round. And from there, it was like, ‘I can wait four more years or figure out my next step.’ And as much as the Olympics are worth it, I decided to work to turn pro.”

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Dove made her pro debut in December 2023 in a win over Marlen Avila. She is 5-0-1 and is coming off a draw vs. Nayeli Rodriguez in May. Dove believes there’s a lot of pressure on her as she transitions to the pros following 15 U.S. amateur championships.

“I think there’s a lot of haters out there,” Dove said. “People want to see you lose, and that’s OK, but that pressure’s definitely there. I’ve beaten a lot of pros in amateurs that probably want to fight me now that I’m pro. Also, I have a whole new set of eyes on me now that I’m with [Most Valuable Promotions]. Not a lot of people like Jake Paul, so they want to see us lose.”

MVP, founded by social media star Paul and Nakisa Bidarian, made growing women’s boxing one of its missions. Shortly after signing undisputed women’s super featherweight champion Alycia Baumgardner, MVP made more news by signing four more women in March — including Dina Thorslund, Ramla Ali, Naomy Valle, and Dove.

“I wanted to be a part of that movement with MVP rather than with any other promotional company because they were doing it the right way,” Dove said. “They actually care about the fighters, which I think is important. It would be one thing if they had signed all these females to look good to the press. But they really do care, and they really are changing the way that we’re viewed, the way that we’re getting paid, the exposure we’re getting, and I think that’s the best part about being with MVP.”

Just three years ago, Dove went from sitting beside world champion Amanda Serrano in Newark, N.J., watching amateur fights to watching Serrano headline Madison Square Garden as part of her trilogy with Katie Taylor — which drew in more eyes to the sport. Venues are even hosting all-female boxing cards.

As she works beside Serrano, Dove hopes to make a name for herself in women’s boxing. That journey continues with her fight on Saturday against Morales, which will be streamed live on DAZN.

“Every fight right before the ring walk, I’m like, ‘What the [expletive] am I doing?’” Dove said. “Like, I’m literally getting paid to go in here, and I might get knocked out. I might knock her out. It’s kind of scary, to be honest with you. But it’s really fun. There’s no type of adrenaline rush like there is before and after a fight.

“This is the most prepared I felt in my entire professional career, and I’m really excited to fight. I feel like I haven’t been myself yet, but I’ve finally found the balance between who I am and how I want to perform. And I would just say, just expect me.”