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Archive for the ‘Malta Fight Clubs’ Category

It’s official: after shutting its doors last September, the former Dixons School of Boxing has reopened under new management, and has been renamed as Boxway (Fitness Centre).

Edwin Micallef of Micallef Promotions, owner of the new gym and Malta’s first internationally recognized boxing promoter, recently called us and we spent some time discussing his reasons for taking over the fitness centre and his plans for going forward.

Edwin explained that he has been involved in the local boxing scene for a number of years. With his involvement going back to 2008 when his two younger siblings showed an interesting in taking up the sport and it was not long before he found himself involved in a number of amateur boxing committees and traveling with the local amateur boxing team for competitions and training camps abroad. Already an experienced events promoter, the organization and promotion of professional boxing shows was a natural step for Edwin.

“Earlier in May this year my brother Daniel along with his friend and training partner Steve Martin successfully registered as professionals with the BBBofC and I decided to start scouting around for training facilities as I wanted to have greater control on the quality of training being offered to our young prospects” – “Then the former Dixon’s club came unexpectedly on the market and I decided to get a head start on my goals by acquiring the lease and the equipment,” said Edwin.

Asked about the future of professional boxing in the Maltese Islands, Edwin replied; “When the Malta Boxing Commission became affiliated with the European Boxing Union in June of this year, I saw this as a great opportunity for serious local boxers and clubs to enter the international boxing scene,

the Malta Commission is an important platform for building a future for local boxing prospects in the Maltese Islands. Boxway is proud to call it self home to Malta’s first officially registered professional boxers.”

Commenting about the future of ‘Boxway’ as a boxing club and fitness centre, Edwin said; “The future looks great, membership has already doubled since we reopened and thanks to contacts provided by our boxing commission we have now started a training and co-operation program with the TKO in London which is not only one of the best boxing gyms in Europe but has some of the best trainers in the world such as Johnny Eames and Jimmy Tibbits – This year in August we had TRAD TKO Trainer Barry Smith, over for two weeks and recently we had one of our local pros, Clayton Vella over in London training for his pro debut which should be sometime this year”.

Edwin explained that the gym will be opening six days a week (closing Sunday) and will be offering training to local male and female professional boxers, special classes for amateur boxers at fixed hours and box-fit sessions. Children will get the opportunity to learn boxing basics, by experienced and qualified coaches.

For more information on membership and classes call Edwin Micallef on 99461751

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Malta Boxing Commission

Gzira, Malta - Monday, 3rd October 2011

Vella’s London Training Camp Over, Returns To Malta Ready To Fight

In June this year the Malta Boxing Commission became the official professional boxing sanctioning organisation for the Republic of Malta. Shortly after becoming affiliated with the European Boxing Union the MBC President, Alexander Zammit, expressed his desire to help aspiring Maltese pro boxers, by organising exchange programmes with overseas coaches and gyms

In August British coach Barry Smith - who trains boxers such as Southern Area Cruiserweight Champion Leon ‘Solid’ Williams, IBO International Lightweight title contender Michael Grant, World ranked Dutch Cruiserweight Mitchell Balker and fellow MBC licensed pro boxer Marianne Marston, amongst others - spent ten days in Malta coaching various of the local boxers at Edwin Micallef’s gym in Msida.

Last week Clayton Vella, one of the first boxers to be licensed by the Malta Boxing Commission, traveled to the UK for a training camp with Barry and Johnny Eames at the World famous fight factory, The TRAD TKO Boxing Gym in Canning Town, London.

TRAD TKO has historically been the home to some of the UK’s biggest names, such as Champions Kevin Lear, Graham Earl, Tony Oakey, Matthew Marsh, Ian Napa, Ross Minter etc. and today is filled with stars such as WBO Inter-Continental Lightweight Champion Kevin Mitchell, WBO Inter-Continental Light Welterweight Champion Frankie Gavin, former IBO Lightweight World Champion Colin Lynes as well as many future domestic and World Champions including the aforementioned Leon Williams, Michael Grant and Mitchell Balker as well as former Olympian Billy Joe Saunders.

No surprise then that Clayton, who prior to turning professional was unbeaten on the unsanctioned fight circuit, initially found both training at the TKO as well as London itself, with it’s eleven million inhabitants, a daunting experience, as was clear when he spoke about the trip following his final training session. “At first I found it very different, now I’m used to it and don’t want to leave.

I’ve made lots of friends here, everyone has been very nice to me.

Barry is one of the best coaches around, I wish I could take him back to train me in Malta all the time, and the TKO gym is the best gym I’ve ever seen, our gym is about half the size.

They really take care of you too. Johnny and Jimmy (Tibbs) were really friendly, they helped me a lot and gave me advice.

So are the boxers I trained with, real stars,Frankie, Billy Joe, Leon, everyone did, everyone was so nice and helped me.

It was a good experience and I watched and learned from them, which is what I came to do.

Sparring was good, they are all good boxers and I learned a lot from them. I first sparred Duncan Cottier, he’s very experienced, 60 fights I think. I sparred Brett O’Callaghan, he’s only 19, he’s very good and unbeaten.

On my last day I spar with Italian boxer Federico Tavares, he’s very good, he spars former World Champions like Colin Lynes all the time. He’s very tough and hard to hit. I also spar with Duncan again. It was hard, technical sparring and it really helped me a lot.

It was a very good experience and I learned a lot, now I’m ready and want to fight.”

PHOTOS

Frankie Gavin, Clayton Vella and Billy Joe Saunders.

Barry Smith and Clayton Vella relax after a training session

Clayton Vella and Federico Tavares sparring at the TRAD TKO in London

After torrid sparring Federico Tavares, Clayton Vella and Duncan Cottier pose for the camera.

PHOTO CREDIT

Gianluca (Rio) Di Caro

JustListen2This Publicity & Promotion

London, UK, Gzira, Malta & Philadelphia, USA

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By Reuben Azzopardi

(MKBA / YingYang Official Reporter) Malta, 1st October, 2011

Ying Yang Kickboxing became the first Maltese Kickboxing club to become part of the “Kunsill Malti għall-Isport” (KMS – Malta Sport Council). With such membership the club will increase its possibilities to represent Malta in international events.

Master Noel Mercieca founded the club in 1996 and together with his students have come a long way from just training the discipline, where now they represent Malta in international Kickboxing competitions. Master Mercieca was recently awarded the 5^th Dan Black Belt and the title of Master in this discipline from Kancho Adrian Axisa, founder of the Malta Kickboxing Association (MKBA). Apart from his Kickboxing qualifications he has a Black Belt in Tang So Do and a Brown Belt in Spirit Combat and he is even a Military Fitness Instructor

Ying Yang Kickboxing is affiliated with local and foreign Martial Arts organizations. Locally it is a member of the MKBA and now the KMS. In 2007 became a member of the World Kickboxing Network (WKN), a renowned international organization with more than 130 countries as members.

Some of Ying Yang’s students are amongst the best Kickboxers in Malta. Some of them hold the local Title Belts as well as European and International ones. In 2006 the club won an International Cup when its students bested 7 British Kickboxers out of 10 in Kickboxing competition in England.

In 2007 Master Mercieca introduced the club to the WKN and thus his students began to participate in K1 rules competitions. Such rules include the use of knee techniques to the body. It was in the same year that Reuben “The Wolf” Azzopardi was the first Maltese to compete in a WKN match, but it was Daniel “The Jet” Zahra that won the first WKN Belt. In 2009 Ruth Tanti was the first Maltese female athlete that brought home World WKN Title Belt.

Ying Yang is always organizing Martial Arts activities in order to promote the Maltese Kickboxing both locally and abroad. In 2009 Malta was the first WKN country member that organized a Kickboxing World Cup here in Malta. This year members of the club even went to Belgium in order to train with the World Thai Boxing Champion Osman Yigin and in August the Osman himself came here in Malta to host a Thai Boxing seminar in Malta.

In December the Ying Yang club will organise a Kickboxing night known as “Gladiators 2″. For this event the main bout is going to be a professinal K1 rules match between the Maltese WKN Champion Daniel “The Jet” Zarha and Jose “Bogas” De Oliveria from Protugal.

For more information regarding the Ying Yang club’s training days please visit the website www.yingyangkickboxing.com or contact Master Noel Mercieca on 79208283 or [email protected]

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Gladiators Fight Night 2 has just been announced and will be held at Sky Club, Paceville, Malta, on the 7^th December 2011

In this event Daniel “THE JET” Zahra will become the first Maltese Kick-Boxer to move to the professional ranks of the sport. For his pro debut Zahra will be taking on a TBA fighter from Portugal, in a 5×3 minutes bout.

As usual the promoters of the Gladiators Fight Nights have prepared a fight card that promises to equal that of ‘Gladiators Fight Night 1’ which was a huge success.

The other ten bouts on the evenings fight card will feature a variety of Kickboxing, K1 and Thaiboxing fights with participants from various Maltese clubs.

Photo: Daniel “THE JET” Zahra

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