Earlier today, Australia’s very own John Wayne Parr (JWP) defeated fellow veteran fighter Pavlos Kaponis in the main event of Muay Thai Grand Prix 5.
The bout was contested under Full Thai Rules and took place in London’s O2 arena Saturday night (Sunday morning in Australia).
JWP’s out of the ring achievements saw him celebrate his 40th birthday a fortnight ago and so this fight was all the more important following losses in the last few years to Brazilian champion Cosmo Alexandre, Perth based prodigy Toby Smith and a March defeat at the hands of Brad Riddell under Caged Muay-Thai rules.
JWP looked sharp and clearly enjoyed the fight. Where he found the most success was with his constant pressure, backing up the Greek champion into the corners with his punches and endless combinations.
Take nothing away from Pavlos Kaponis, he is a gentleman outside of the ring and a warrior inside of it, ultimately losing to the ‘Gunslinger’ by unanimous decision in front of a dedicated crowd which weren’t at all phased by the late timing of the main event (which didn’t start until after midnight local time).
The lead up to the main event saw Kevin Vidal upset Matt Tieu to become the new MTGP world featherweight champion and take home performance of the night honours. Kevin was Shoothon gym’s shining light in an otherwise tough night for their fight team.
Also on the card, Charlie Peters retained the MTGP welterweight title with a second-round knockout over Nauzet Trujillo while Daniel McGowan captured the MTGP bantamweight title with a second-round TKO over Renaud Hausdorff.
