Sydney Thomas Says Breaking Up with Her Boyfriend Before Tyson-Paul Fight ‘Paid Off’ (Exclusive)

Sydney Thomas has no regrets about breaking up with her boyfriend earlier this year.

Before the 21-year-old ring girl from the Jake Paul and Mike Tyson fight went viral, Thomas wanted to eliminate any distractions from her life, she tells PEOPLE exclusively.

"I was just at this point where I was like, 'I just want to become the best version of myself and I just need to take everything that's distracting me out of the picture.' So yes, I did break up with my boyfriend."

The University of Alabama student jokes that she's not sure if she was "having a midlife crisis or something," but admits that ending her relationship was not easy.

"It was hard to do that, but in the end I think it paid off in the way that now I'm able to handle any situation on my own."

Related: Ring Girl Sydney Thomas Reveals What Jake Paul Told Her at Mike Tyson Fight — and Who's Slid into Her DMs (Exclusive)

And if the last month is any indication, Thomas is certainly finding success in her single era, which allowed her to focus on herself.

"Headed into the fight, I was very locked into everything with the gym and eating and all that, because, obviously, you want to be looking your best when you're on Netflix in front of so many people," says Thomas.

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In the weeks leading up to the Nov. 15 fight — in which Paul, 27, defeated Tyson, 58, at AT&T Stadium in Dallas, TX., — Thomas followed a strict routine to make sure she was ready for her big moment.

"I didn't spend a lot of time going out with my friends or anything because I was like, I have to be so locked into this," she tells PEOPLE.

In fact, Thomas — who typically keeps a chill, low-profile when she's not modeling or in the ring — says she's not interested in a relationship at the moment.

"I'm so not focused on any of that right now," she says of the guys in her DMs trying to ask her out.

"I don't even care to read through any of that. I'm so happy with myself, and that's where all my time is going, so anyone reaching out who's wanting to be with me, it's just slipping right on by because I do not have any intention to involve myself with that."

Related: Viral Ring Girl from Mike Tyson-Jake Paul Fight Addresses Biggest Misconceptions About Her

Instead, Thomas says she spends "a lot of time alone" to focus on herself.

"I'm very invested in myself. So anything that I can do to just make myself a better version of me is where I spend a lot of my time," she explains. "I spend a lot of time working out, going on walks, cooking and just trying to keep myself healthy. I spent a lot of time focusing on my mental health as well, just journaling and praying and stuff like that."

Read the original article on People