Steve Moxon: Onward and Upward
International Kickboxer Magazine, Vol.18, No.3
Steve ‘Stone Cold’ Moxon has cleared a lot of hurdles in his 4 years of training. He is now standing on the brink of international success. He tells Jarrod Boyle about his run along the road to the top.
How old are you, Steve?
I’m 22.
Where are you from originally?
I grew up in Ballan, which is a small town in Victoria, on the outskirts of Ballarat.
What’s your fight record stand at?
18 fights, 17wins, 1 loss, 8KO
How did you get started training?
I started training at Bacchus Marsh. I went in to the gym with a friend, just after I had turned 18. I went just to have a look and start training for weight loss and fitness – I weighed about ninety kilos at the time!
How did you end up training in Sydney with Peter Graham?
I decided to go on a holiday, so I emailed him and asked if I could go to his gym and train. I’d never met him before. He picked me up from the airport and even had me stay in his house. We trained twice a day – he was testing me, not just in terms of my skills, but my ability to commit and work hard. After that, I had a chat with his manager, and then I was signed.
How is the training up there?
Boxing Works is a great place to train. I get much more sparring. It helps that it’s such a diverse gym; there are lots of different styles and skills trainers. I have a separate stretch and massage coach, a strength-and-conditioning coach, and both Pete and Tony Daou train me on pads.
What’s your training schedule?
I run at 6am daily, for 8km. Then, I have my second training session in the evening, which runs for 2 hours. I start with shadow and skipping, and from there move on to bag-work and sparring. I finish on the pads when I’m really tired, to make sure I’m sharp. For me, flexibility training is a must. I also do my strength-and-conditioning in an MMA-style circuit workout, 3 times a week. I train six days out of seven.
What’s your fight schedule been like? How many fights have you had in Sydney, as opposed to Melbourne?
In Melbourne, I had 11 fights over a 2-year period. Since I’ve been in Sydney, I’ve had 7 fights in 12 months.
How do you find living in a different state? Uprooting your life and moving like that is a huge step to take!
Originally, navigating the city was really tough. The gym is off Oxford St in the city, so there’s lots of freaks! I figured out pretty fast to just put my head down keep going!
Tell us about the reality show, ‘Enfusion’.
It was a Dutch reality tv show; their version of ‘The Contender’. I represented Australia. The weight class was basically K1 Max, 70kg. Gago Drago and Armin Pertrosyan (brother of current K1 Max champion, Georgio) were two of the more famous contestants. The show was basically stacked for the cameras; we had two training sessions and then we fought!
I fought Pasi Lukanen, from Finland. He’d had about 75 fights, and has pretty much fought everyone. He beat me on points. I was pretty disappointed. I had to cut a lot of weight – 8kg – and it was just too draining. When we fought, I chose to stand toe-to-toe, when I should have moved! We fought under what’s called ‘Showtime rules’, which is basically the same as K1, but with a 3-second grapple.
How did your first loss impact on your outlook?
I needed it. Looking back, I could have beaten Lukanen if I’d done it right. I hit him as hard as I could, but he has a solid chin and just wouldn’t go down. Every time I hit him, he’d back off and kick across my arms. That way, he built up points for the decision. He had a lot more finesse than I did as a result of his experience.
The more experienced guys on the show took better care of their bodies. They cut weight slow, through training, rather than trying to do it right before, in the sauna. That’s a very hard thing to do in Thailand!
Best of all, I really learned what it takes for K1. More experience, more fights. Those guys are nothing special; it’s survival of the fittest. You don’t have to be most technical, but you do need to be fit, skilled, and precise.
Who is next on your list?
I want to fight international. Guys like Zambidis and Drago. There are still some top guys in Australia, though – Ian Schaffa, Mark Mullen and Frank Giorgi are really up there. Basically, I want to fight the best guys they can put in front of me.
What are your plans for the year ahead?
My next fight will be in Melbourne, on Joe Nader’s show. Hopefully, I’ll also get something up in Sydney because I’m keen to establish myself up here. I’ll also be fighting on the K1 Oceania show in Canberra.
Anyone you want to shout out to?
Thanks to all my Melbourne supporters, the friends and family who travel so far to see me. Thanks to Tony Daou, Peter Graham and the guys at Boxing Works – Geoff O’Hara and Jessica Peddimont – and of course, my sponsors at Australian Sports Nutrition and Isec security. I also have to thank my mate, Big Joe.
Theme Park at its Darkest 
Leave a Reply