I’ve been around combat sports pretty much my whole life. I first touched Muay Thai when I was about five years old, watching my dad compete and my cousin Daniel Dawson, that early exposure really stuck with me.

At 11, I started into boxing, training under Geoff Peterson in South Perth. That gym shaped me. I was surrounded by elite fighters — Romesh Fernando, the 48kg Australian Champion; Earl Wiltshire, 51kg Australian Champion; Anthony Little, 60kg Australian Champion- and a lot of other high-level boxers I looked up to. Being in that environment taught me what real standards look like.

I was a student of the game. I soaked up everything I could — not just at the gym, but at home too. I’d practice for hours, obsess over the details, and try to understand why things worked, not just how. I competed, had a number of fights, went to the nationals a few times, and stepped away from boxing after my last fight at 21.

When I finished fighting, I went and lived life. There were ups and downs, lessons learned, and time away from the sport. Eventually, I came back full circle — with a clearer understanding that it was time to give back. Boxing had given me so much, and it felt right to return to it in a different role.

As a coach, that’s where I found my purpose. I’m calm, methodical, and detail-focused — a bit of a perfectionist — but I don’t shy away from hard work. I believe boxing is a powerful way to move energy through the body, to build discipline and resilience, and to complement whatever else people use for their own self-care.

At the same time, I’m serious about creating high-level fighters. My goal is to build a strong fight team — athletes who push each other, look after each other, and hold each other to a higher standard. A gym should be a community where everyone works together, because that’s how champions are made — not just individually, but as a team.

Ultimately, I want to pass on real knowledge, uphold high standards, and help people grow — as fighters and as humans — through the craft of boxing and through my personal experiences.