Ring Girl Sydney Thomas, Famous for Mike Tyson/Jake Paul Fight, Is Determined to Become an SI Swimsuit Model

The TikTok star went viral this month during the Mike Tyson vs. Jake Paul boxing match on Netflix.

Ring girl Sydney Thomas alongside Mike Tyson and Jake Paul at The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory for Netflix boxing match / Christian Petersen/Getty Images

It’s an exciting time to be a ring girl when forces like Mike Tyson and Jake Paul face off—especially when the match is broadcast on Netflix for a global audience to watch live. Unless you live under a rock, you at least heard of the big event that took place on Friday, Nov. 15, seeing Netflix and Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) partnering for a highly-anticipated fight between former pro Mike Tyson—considered one of the best heavyweight boxers of all time—and YouTuber-turned-pro Jake Paul.

The 27-year-old won the fight in a unanimous decision, in an event Netflix describes as a “record-breaking night” for the streamer with a whopping reported 60 million households tuning in for the final matchup. And while viewers were no doubt there for the Tyson/Paul fight, they also paid close attention to the ring girls, including 20-year-old Sydney Thomas. Social media was on fire with reactions to Thomas, sharing photos of her from the Netflix event as well as finding her TikTok and Instagram accounts.

Though Thomas had been going viral on TikTok prior to the Tyson/Paul match, her social media pages have skyrocketed in followers since the event last Friday, with the ring girl now having a combined 1.7 million followers across TikTok and Instagram. And the most awesome part about this all? Thomas totally manifested this exact moment.

Remember when the world became obsessed with Pamela Anderson when she was spotted on the big screen at a college football game?

Similar vibes to Sydney Thomas right now. Every social media I am on has been all her since Friday night. Shes gonna be huge. pic.twitter.com/dAqbMcgoJx

— ☘️ Shane! ☘️ (@Carcosa85) November 17, 2024

On Instagram this week, Thomas shared something incredible to her story, posting a piece of paper she had kept in her drawer. Prior to booking the boxing event, she had written down two big goals for herself. “I will be a ring girl for the Paul vs Tyson fight in November,” the first line read, followed by, “I will be in Sports llustrated Swimsuit 2025.” While the second goal hasn’t happened (yet!), the first certainly has.

The internet personality wrote above the photo, “I keep 2 things in my top drawer: A bible, and this piece of paper. I wrote this out the day I got to school this year as things I would like to accomplish in my last year here at [the University of Alabama].”

“Coming back home after this weekend is a very full circle moment for me, and is just a reminder that you can accomplish anything you set your mind to,” Thomas continued. “God is always on your side. You are in control. Never doubt yourself. & Dream big.”

Thomas is determined to follow her dreams, which is totally inspiring. Taking to TikTok, she also explained the power of manifestation, telling her followers, “I want this to serve as a reminder to you guys that you don’t have to wait. Your dreams and your goals; you don’t have to wait. I’m 20, and I have big dreams and big goals, and I put that out there for myself and, you know, the world is in your hands.”

Ring girls, including Sydney Thomas, attend Live On Netflix: Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson at AT&T Stadium / Sarah Stier/Getty Images for Netflix

That’s certainly a mindset worth admiring. And as Thomas continues to go after her big goals and manifest her way to her next achievement, she’s already getting approached by “big names.” While speaking with Us Weekly, the college student relived the day after the fight when she realized her life was going to be forever changed. “I woke up and saw how my followers had gone up, and then saw all the news articles that had been written about me,” Thomas recalled. “I refreshed my feed and it was just pictures of me and memes and everything. I think that was the moment for me where I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, like I really am going viral.’”

“My DMs are just insanely flooded right now,” she shared. “There’s definitely been some pretty big names and brands that have reached out.”

No matter where Thomas’s career goes next, there’s definitely one thing for sure—this will hardly be the last we see of her.