By Nick Creely
To champion kickboxer Jayden Wright, every win makes him even hungrier for more success.
The 26 year-old Officer and XFC Narre Warren man’s latest inspirational victory; taking him to a professional record of 7-0; came at a buzzing Melbourne Pavilion for Powerplay 36 last Friday night.
Up against the unknown challenge of Leone Charalambous, Jayden swung the fight in the third round to win unanimously, with a series of brilliant body shots and uppercuts putting him ahead at the final bell.
Jayden explained that this fight in particular set him a unique challenge, one that made him have to think on his feet and adapt to what was thrown at him.
“It was good to get the win, considering we went in knowing absolutely nothing about him; we had no idea about him or what he could do,” he said.
“The Mini fight was still the hardest to date, but this was hard considering we knew absolutely nothing about him; if it happened again, it would be a completely different story because now we know what he’s capable of.
“All you can do is assume in that situation, and he did nothing of what we did assume; we got in the ring, and he did nothing of what we planned, so we had to adjust in the ring and go on the fly.
“The first round, I got on top of him, and he stunned me with a good straight left to the chin in the second, and then I halted the momentum for a brief period, and in the third round I brought it home; fitness definitely played a part, for sure.”
Jayden still has to pinch himself in the ring, with the crowd, atmosphere and buzz around the Pavilion something that stays in his head.
“At the Pavilion, there’s always a great atmosphere; being my fourth time it’s always overwhelming, and having the XFC family down there as always is just amazing, it’s always so loud” he said.
But this win hasn’t satisfied the hunger that has driven him to bounce back time and time again, and wants to continue making his fans and coaches proud, and his opponent’s quake in their boots.
“I’m just that hungry, I’ll be back in the ring in just three weeks; my coach has me on a timeline, which is a 10 year timeline; as my coach tells me, I’m only 40 per cent there in my development, I’ve got another 60 per cent of growth to do,” he said.
“I want to improve my fight IQ, things like being able to make strategy decisions at the drop of a hat; I’ve had another taste, now I want more.
“I’m at full throttle, straight back into training.”
And Jayden recently added to his already extensive tattoo collection, and said he is hoping to add more in the near future.
“I just added a new tattoo to the head (after the fight), so I just have to make sure I keep winning,” he joked.
Jayden will back in the ring on 23 March for Ultimate Legends, where he will look to continue his stunning record.
