Cassar-Borg picked up the title at AMMA Oak Flats’ Beach Bash fight night two weeks ago, climbing off the canvas after a fourth round knockdown to win the NSW strap by decision.

Having waited 22 bouts for his first opportunity, Cassar-Borg said it was a relief to finally claim the honour. 

“It’s something I’ve wanted since I was 16 years old so it’s taken a lot of hard work to get here,” Cassar-Borg said.

“I stepped in there with a lot of confidence even though my opponent was bigger than me but I kept telling myself I could do it.

“I had it over him in the first three rounds. In the fourth round he dropped me but I stayed confident came back in the fifth round and got the win on points.

“It was great to do it in front of a home crowd as well.”

The 21-year-old, who splits his time between Downtown Old School and AMMA under coaches Lee Carr, Nick Moulas and Kevin Seah, will now turn his attention to chasing an Australian title and then a possible pro career.

“After this I feel like I can achieve anything really,” Cassar-Borg said.

“I’ve made fighting my life since I was a teenager.

“My coaches Lee, Kevin and Nick have put a lot of time and dedication into my training which I really appreciate. 

“They’ve always believed in me.

“It’s been a big mental battle seeing as a lot of my first fights were losses so it took a lot of dedication and hard work.

“I’d like to have a few more fights and then hopefully fight for an Australian title.”

Carr said the title was reward for persistence after some early career setbacks and a credit to the gyms involved for their guidance.

“He had a good prep, 110 rounds of sparring against fighters of all shapes sizes and abilities,” Carr said.

“We had some great sparring with some muay-thai guys and we got around to a lot of gyms in Sydney for sparring as well.

“You’ve got to thank all the gyms involved because we’re a small town but if we help each other out we can put Wollongong on the map.

“Full credit to Noah. He went down, got up, showed the guy he wasn’t hurt and we got the belt. He’s the NSW champion now so we couldn’t be happier.”

The Beach Bash won rave reviews from fighters, officials and fans and proved a successful one for Illawarra fighters with Cassar-Borg’s AMMA stable mate Joey Elhazouri also claiming a state title on the night.