MARTIAL ARTS
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Rising Wollongong Muay Thai star David Pennimpede is confident he can endure whatever the professional ranks throw at him after surviving his maiden trip to Thailand last year.
The 18-year-old travelled to Thailand in December for a two-week training camp which culminated in a victory over a Thai opponent on the King's Birthday card - the world's largest Muay Thai event.
The torturous training regimen included daily 15-kilometre runs in tropical heat and several hours sparring veteran fighters in the gym. He feels it leaves him well equipped to embark on his professional career.
"It's just brutal running up to 15 km each day and all the pad work sparring with the Thai boys," Pennimpede said.
"It was a great experience. Fighting a Thai in Thailand is something I've always wanted to do and winning a fight on the King's Birthday weekend was a great moment for me. The Thais start when they're eight-10-years-old, so they've had usually 80-100 fights under their belts ... beating a Thai with that sort of experience is going to be a massive help for me."
He hasn't slowed down since returning to Australia as he prepares for three fights in nine weeks, beginning with a bout this Friday at Hurstville Entertainment Centre against Khosrow Minoo.
Following Friday's fight, Pennimpede will travel to Adelaide four weeks later to main event the Shins of Steel fight card against one of the light-heavyweight division's biggest stars, Jason Altman.
"I'm fighting a big name over there, he's had a lot of fights and he's got good knockout power, so I'm looking forward to getting over there and showing how much I've grown since last year," Pennimpede said.
"If I can get a fight once every month I'm happy. I just want good, hard fights. I've won state titles as an amateur, so now I've turned pro I want to get another state title and preferably an Aussie title. I only turned 18 on October, so I've got a lot of fights ahead of me.
Coach Danny Jones expected the Adelaide fight with Altman to be the toughest of his young protege's career.
"It's going to be a really hard fight," Jones said.
"[Altman] is a very strong boy, really good in the clinch with good elbows.
"He's had about 20-odd fights, he's very experienced and he's one of South Australia's top fighters, but we're confident we can get the win there."