REGARDLESS of what Scottish boxers achieve in the future, Kristen Fraser’s name will forever be etched in the record books.

Two months ago, the 28 year-old from Aberdeen became the first Scottish woman to compete in the professional boxing ranks. And she made an impressive start to her pro career, claiming an emphatic victory in front of a home crowd in the Granite City.

Following that win, Fraser was keen to continue her momentum and so had her second pro fight scheduled for tomorrow evening but a last-minute cancellation means that she now won’t fight again until June, when she takes to the ring in Glasgow.

“I was feeling good so it’s disappointing that this fight has been postponed,” she says. “But this is a great opportunity for me to box on an undercard in Glasgow so I’m really looking forward to that.

“I was really happy with how I boxed in my first fight but there’s always improvements to be made so I’ve been working on a few things in preparation for my second outing.”

Fraser may be the first Scottish woman to move into the pro ranks but the decision was not actually, she admits, a particularly difficult one.

An impressive amateur career saw her pick up five Scottish titles but the decision by Boxing Scotland not to send any female boxers to the Glasgow Commonwealth Games in 2014 was deeply disheartening for Fraser. It left her at a crossroads– either continue doing what she had been doing or make a change.

She took the latter option and decided that her best move was to leave the amateur ranks.

Despite her certainty though, she admits that a few nerves came with her new professional status and the attention it garnered.

“It was pretty awesome to become the first Scottish woman to turn pro but I did feel a bit of pressure at the start and I began to think ‘what if I don’t perform, what if I lose?’”, she reveals. “But after I got over that initial apprehension, I started to really enjoy it.

“It’s so good to be at the forefront of women’s boxing in Scotland and be the person who, in the future, people look at as their marker and want to do better than me. Someone had to take the step and I’ve had so much support which has been fantastic.”

Fraser could not have picked a better time to have joined the pro ranks. The stature of women’s boxing is on a continual rise and with the likes of Katie Taylor and Nicola Adams having recently turned professional, the profile of the sport has never been higher.

It is quite a difference in landscape in comparison to what things were like when Fraser first picked up a pair of boxing gloves 17 years ago.

“I was about 11 when I started boxing but I didn’t do anything competitive- at that time, women or girls just didn’t box,” she recalls.

“So I started doing other types of contact sport but at 16 or 17, I got myself into a boxing gym and that’s been me ever since. I definitely got a strange reception when I first said that I wanted to box and actually, some people are still like that although that’s very much the minority now.

“The club that I’m still with, the first time I walked in there, they’d never seen a woman box before.”

Attitudes are changing rapidly though and Fraser enjoyed a raucous support at her maiden pro fight. It is, she admits, hugely encouraging, particularly for the next generation of female boxers, that women’s boxing is pushing its way into the mainstream so forcefully and she is aware of how vital a role she can play as the face of women’s professional boxing in this country.

“People are definitely adjusting to women boxing and it’s really good to see people’s attitudes changing,” she says. “It’s fantastic for me to be a role model and if I can motivate even one person to get into the gym or try boxing – or any sport actually – then that’s great. Especially in this day and age when kids are obsessed with computers, if they’re getting out there and chasing their dream in sport then that’s absolutely brilliant and if anything I do has any impact on them then I’m over the moon.”

Fraser may have made a good start to her pro career but she is acutely aware that this is just the beginning. Her hunger for success is apparent and while she knows that she must be patient, she has a clear plan in her head of where she wants to be in the coming years.

“The rest of this year, I’m looking to gain more experience because there’s still lots I don’t know,” she says. “And then next year, I’m going to start chasing titles so that by the end of 2018, I’ll be starting to aim for bigger international titles.

“I’m not just going to sit and wait– I’m hunting people down and I want those belts.”