King in the Ring on Saturday
King in the Ring on Saturday
Fighters from across the
country are gearing up for one of New Zealand’s most high
profile eight-man tournament series, King in the
Ring.
The eight cruiserweights (subs: 86kgs) will
battle it out this Saturday (subs: August 30) at
Auckland’s ASB stadium, with last year’s champion Ty
Williams returning to defend his title.
The
27-year-old Porirua fighter came from nowhere to win three
bouts in one night and take the title last
year.
Williams does not have a strategy going into
this year’s tournament, and aims to spend fight day
keeping his mind clear through meditation and
relaxation.
‘’I can't think like a fan and get
stuck into the hype - it wouldn't serve me well in the
fight.’’
He rates 25-year-old Auckland-based
professional fighter Israel ‘Style Bender’ Adesanya as
the man to beat on the night. ‘’He’s a cut above the
rest,’’ Williams said.
Adesanya, whose titles
include WKBF New Zealand cruiserweight and light-heavyweight
champion and IKBF New Zealand Super 8 champion, is the first
Kiwi to compete on kickboxing's biggest international stage,
the Glory World Series.
Adesanya’s ritual for fight
day is ‘’get bald, and just relax and do
whatevs’’.
‘’I feel awesome. I've had my mind
on this since April. I've jumped a few levels up on my
training. My strategy is to whoop any man that stands in
front of me that night ... pretty basic.’’
Fellow
Auckland fighter, Slava 'Scarface' Alexeichik, also carries
a host of titles under his belt. The current HKMTA South
Pacific Super-middleweight and Commonwealth light-heavy
weight champion and former WKBF NZ super-middleweight and
light-heavyweight champion is set to make waves in this
weekend’s eight-man.
‘’I feel very confident. I
have done all the work if not more and come prepared. All I
have to do now is make sure I can put it all together on the
night.’’
Alexeichik’s fight day technique
includes relaxing and watching movies.
‘‘I like to
watch my old fight DVDs. [It] takes me on a trip down memory
lane, plus there are some good older fights of the
generation before me, like Choppa [Shane Chapman], Jan
[Antolik], and Tony [Angelov] that really get me in the mood
for a good punch up.’’
Hailing from south Auckland
is WKBF cruiser and super-cruiserweight champion, Pati
‘Arsenal’ Afoa.
Afoa also looks set to spend his
Saturday preparing for war by being in relaxation
mode.
‘’I just chill and hang with friends and
family for good vibes.’’
The 36-year-old is aiming
to come out on top in a potential rematch from last year’s
eight-man with North Shore’s Jamie 'The Kyokushin Kid'
Eades.
‘’I’m bringing full arsenal this
time,’’ Afoa said. ‘’[I’ve had] good preparation
[and I’m] ready mentally and physically, and I feel
excited to fight a pretty awesome
line-up.’’
Eades, a 26-year-old who originally
hails from Wellington, is the current WKBF and WMC pro
champion, and former amateur TBA super-cruiser and WKBF
cruiserweight champion. He has a wealth of experience in
tournament-style competitions thanks to
karate.
Eades’ dream match would be with Adesanya in
the final.
‘’Israel and I have fought twice before
and have a win a piece both on split decisions. A rubber
match in the final would be poetic.’’
He’s also
keen to be pitted against Masterton 23-year-old Zane
'Hybrid' Hopman.
‘’Zane beat my brother a few
years back and has a good record, including a gold medal at
the world champs,’’ Eades said.
Hopman is
revelling in the opportunity in being amongst the
country’s best, and having the opportunity to show New
Zealand’s fight fans what he has to
offer.
‘’Whatever is placed in my path I will take
head on.’’
Fight day preparation for him includes
‘’good music and good food…[and] lots of naps and
stretching.’’
Hastings-based fighter Andrew
'Bulldog' Banham doesn’t have a particular routine on
fight day.
‘’I like to spend some time visualizing
the fight I want to have, but try not to focus on it too
much either; just going out and doing something to take your
mind off the fight for a bit can help because that day can
go pretty slowly if you’re playing the waiting game,’’
the 38 year old former WMC cruiserweight, WKA NZ
cruiserweight and WKA South Pacific light-heavyweight
champion said.
‘’It’s hard to have a strategy
going in when you don't know who you’re fighting, but if
you try to conserve energy for later fights you may lose and
it’s all for nothing, so you have to take 100 percent
effort into every fight.’’
Current WMC North
Island heavyweight champion, Pukekohe-based Zack 'Fearless'
Fatamaka is taking a similar approach.
It the
27-year-old’s first eight-man tournament. His strategy is,
‘’fight 100 percent with no holding
back’’.
His fight day routine is going to include
‘’lunch at home with my kids and
partner’’.
The King in the Ring Eliminator Series
will be held at ASB Stadium in Auckland this Saturday,
August 30. Tickets can be purchased at
www.iticket.co.nz.
ends