The First Rule of Fight Camp: UK Champ Talks About Whatever He Likes
Scotland's Tommy Young is the current British welterweight champion in Muay Thai. It's fair to say he could beat you up. This week he launches his hugely successful Fight Camp here in the capital. Fight Camp was originally set-up in his hometown of Glasgow where it's been running for six years, helping Glaswegians burn off those battered Mars Bar calories.
"Fight Camp is a unique training environment based on our own firsthand experiences in training for competition," reads the official Fight Camp website. The first camp kicks off on Tuesday November 19, and you can still sign up. It takes place at The Fight Republic Gym three nights a week.
We very gingerly asked Fight Camp coach Tommy some searching questions about being mad tough and pleaded with him not to be offended by them.
Did you ever get punched in the nose in a fight and think, 'What am I doing? Time for a new job.'?
Haha! During a fight there is no time to think like that. Training for the fight is usually when these thoughts enter your mind. Like, "I'm on my way to work and today's shift involves ten rounds sparring with some of the UK's best fighters..." On an off day, that's a hard shift!
Would you ever hit a man with glasses? Why/why not?
Why do you want me to hit this man with glasses? To be honest, I'm really not a violent guy. I love Muay Thai and the art of combat sports, but that's where hitting people ends for me.
Do you ever stand on a packed subway train and think, 'I could destroy every person on this train'?
Haha! Oh yeah, with my mind, like a Jedi.
Which nationality do you most like to fight? Why?
I see fighting and training Muay Thai like a really hard physical puzzle. In the ring it's you vs. him. Your skill and power vs. his. It doesn't matter where the opponent is from. To me, it's just another puzzle to work out and overcome. That being said, fighting Thai people at their national sport is a special feeling.
Who'd win a fight out of you and Kurt Sloane (Jean-Claude Van Damme's character in 1989 action thriller Kickboxer)?
Me, I'd leave him wishing he opted for a rematch with Tong Po.
Watching this video will make your day.
We asked Tommy if he could dance better than Sloane. He didn't answer. At this point we backed off and stopped wasting the man's time.
For more information about Fight Camp, contact The Fight Republic Gym at roryvdb@fightrepublic.asia or call 136 5126 1826.
Email: paulryding@thebeijinger.com
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Photo courtesy of Fight Camp/Tommy Young