I’ve been lucky enough in my long Muay Thai career to have shared a ring with some of the sport’s greats.
When I was 19, I had the opportunity to fight for my first world championship – the WMC (World Muay Thai Council) title against a big-name Thai fighter at the time, Ying Yai. I’d won a succession of national and European titles up to that point but, to me, this was going to be the true test to see if the years of grinding at the gym from such a young age had really made me the best I could be.
Ying Yai was dominating the scene at the time, and fans and pundits – even my fellow countrymen – were convinced it would be a mistake for me to step in the ring against such an accomplished veteran. But after five hard-fought, fast-paced rounds, using every weapon I had, I walked away with the belt around my waist and my hand in the air. It was emotional – something I’ll never forget. I’d made my dad and trainer proud, but I’d also proved all the doubters wrong. This willingness to believe in myself has been one of the greatest tools I’ve acquired as a fighter.
In 2006, I had one of the most memorable fights of my career against an Australian fighter called ‘John’ Wayne Parr. He was known as the most famous and influential Western Thai boxer of all time, with a record of over 100 fights against the cream of the Muay Thai crop. The cherry on top was the fact that I’d be fighting him in my hometown of London for the WBC (World Boxing Council) world title. After five rounds, I’d left everything in the ring – and I walked away the victor. That was a major turning point in my career.
But in just over two weeks, I’ll be presented with the toughest challenge so far. The GLORY World Series’ four-man tournament has come around fast, and pretty soon I’ll be jetting out to California to put my early mornings, late nights and hours of training to the test. As a fighter, you always have to see your next fight as your toughest, but I have every confidence that the battles I faced early in my career have sharpened my tools enough to help me take gold on 28th September.
Don’t blink.
