WELLINGTON boxing champion Joel Galea won’t be cutting any corners as he prepares to claim NSW Welterweight State Title on May 11.
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Galea stepped up to the plate on Saturday night and came out with a great result, winning his bout against Kane Buckley from Sydney at the Dubbo RSL.
Boxing fans got their money’s worth when they watched their local favourite in what he described as one of the best fights in his career.
“It all went to plan. I knew it would be a challenge but everything came into place which kept me going,” Galea said.
“Saturday’s fight brought the best out of me. I’m learning more now than I’ve ever learned before and I can see myself getting better... I’m pumped.”
Galea, along with fellow boxer Robert Toomey, will step into the ring on May 11 in Dubbo.
Galea said he was looking forward to training with Toomey, who had just come out of a shoulder operation but was on the mend.
“There’s 10 weeks until the May fight and I’m ready for it. I love getting in the ring - I would fight five days a week if I could,” he said.
“I’ve been training with a great group of boys from Hardnox and fought with three of them on Saturday. I love training with them because we’re all doing the same thing and we all work together.”
He said moments before he stepped into the ring on the weekend, he was nervous, not for what he was about to do, but for his fellow Hardnox boxers.
“We’re there to do a job and I was concerned to see whether they would do well,” he said.
“One of the best things about a fight like that is the crowd - I love when they go crazy.”
Galea’s training intensified eight weeks before the main event. He said there was a big lead-up in that short amount of time, but as he had 10 weeks until the May event he would start preparing as soon as possible.
“I have a fight in Wellington in the next few weeks and I’ll start preparing for May after that. I’m in the ring every day but I’m also doing things behind the scenes and not many people know that,” he said.
“To keep the weight down we run between 50 and 60km a week. Lisa Tratt has been helping me with my conditioning which is a bonus. All of this has to be done,” he said.
Galea remains confident he’ll acquire the state title in May but is adamant he won’t cut any corners during training.
“My fitness is key and that’s what drives me along. I’ll be going hard,” he said.
