A lot has already been made of the historic element surrounding Alex Winwood’s (4-0, 2 KOs) upcoming WBA minimumweight title challenge, and rightly so. Should he be triumphant over long-reigning champion Thammanoon “Knockout CP Freshmart” Niyomtrong (24-0, 9 KOs) in Perth on September 7, the 27-year-old will become the fastest Australian male to win a world boxing title, eclipsing a record held by Jeff Fenech since 1985. Yet there is another reason why the contest will be a watershed moment, one that tugs at the heartstrings of “The A Rock.”
A proud Noongar man, Winwood will become the first fighter from the Indigenous nation to compete for a world title, and in doing so, he will be the first to battle for the sport’s highest honor on Whadjuk land and his home soil. With the dominance of Noongar athletes over Australia’s football codes in recent decades receiving high acclaim, the Bunbury-born fighter is well aware of the unique path he has taken and the opportunity that awaits. In Winwood’s eyes, history has already been made.
“I couldn’t have asked for much more really. To not only be fighting for one but to do it on home soil and represent my tribe and Australia is just unreal,” Winwood told FightsATW. “A lot of Noongars and a lot of Indigenous athletes would go for AFL or NRL essentially. I’ve chosen my own path. There’s been fighters before me, but not as many (as in team sports). It’s kind of exciting to be a bit of a trailblazer, especially at the lighter-weight classes. I don’t know of many Indigenous boxers that were down this small.”
While a niche in the record books has already been carved out, a world title has not yet been won, a fact not lost on Winwood. Resting on his accomplishments has never been a problem, however. Since turning professional in late 2022, the Tokyo 2020 Olympian has lived by the idea of not shying away from tough challenges, a mantra drilled into him by trainer Angelo Hyder. In his past two contests, Winwood took wide decision wins over then WBC number five contender Reyneris Gutierrez (10-2, 2 KOs) and tough Filipino Cris Ganoza (20-6, 10 KOs). Had it not been for an event cancellation in June, a WBC title eliminator with Joey Canoy (21-5-2, 13 KOs) would have also been added to the already impressive record.
It is no surprise that Winwood didn’t think twice about accepting when given the opportunity to be the next contender to try and end Niyomtrong’s eight-year reign. “Angelo said from the very beginning when he started giving me the hard fights, and I said as well I wanted hard fights, ‘well if he gets in there and loses, then we know where we’re at and where we need to be.’ Now we’re right at championship level, so I believe I deserve to be there and that I can win at that level. I’ve got full faith in myself,” he said.
“It’s given me a mentality to be fearless, in knowing that we haven’t been around for ten years trying to pad our record and whatever else and protect it. We’re taking on anyone and everyone that we can. This fight goes to show that. This fight is definitely going to be my toughest fight yet, so we’ve prepared in a way that we think is kicking all the goals so far.”
The pivot to the Niyomtrong bout has come with a complete upheaval of plans. Having centered his focus on southpaw Canoy in the hope of landing a showdown with then WBC title holder Yudai Shigeoka (8-1, 5 KOs), Winwood is now not just gearing up for a conventional combatant but the longest reigning world champion in all of boxing—quite the puzzle to solve in less than three months. To assist, Winwood has gone into his rival’s home turf, sparring WBO and IBF number four light flyweight Thanongsak Simsri (34-1, 31 KOs). The world-class rounds, coupled with the intense Thai heat, have helped put all of the pieces together. “We’re over here in ‘CP’s’ backyard. The weather over here is a big factor,” he said.
“It’s brought another aspect to my preparation, where I have to manage my fatigue throughout training and the sparring sessions. That’s something that’s really been highlighted. I’m definitely managing a lot better throughout the rounds and pumping the rounds out. Back in Australia, you can kind of just go flat out, and you might be gassing out at the end. It’s definitely given me a good look at what we do well and what I needed to build on.”
Such an inward focus has left Winwood looking only at the factors he can control, but he is not ignorant to the idea that both competitors will need to have the answers on the night. Just as the home fighter will need to find the key to a lock that has remained unopened for over a decade, the champion has to defend on foreign soil for the first time in his career. How much this variable plays a role is hard to hypothesize, yet there is one certainty at play. Niyomtrong isn’t making a stock standard trek to another country. He’s fighting on Whadjuk land. Noongar country. Home country. “I understand the task at hand, and that’s one other bloke inside the ring with me,” Winwood concluded.
“He’s a durable champion. Very typical of a Thai, he’s a bit of a slow starter. He’s more than happy to stand in front, plant his feet, and go to a bit of a war. It’s worked for him for ten years. We know it’s not just going to come down to one punch and he’s out of there. As you do, you’re going to have to wear him out and pick your chances and find the openings or create them. We’re leaning on a lot of my natural ability and tailoring it off of that to where he can’t just get someone in the gym who is conventional boxing to imitate me. I think he’s going to find it a bit more of a struggle in there with me than I will with him. He doesn’t know how he’s going to travel. So he’s got questions that he’s going to need to answer, and he’s going to be out of his element. He’s not going to be fighting in this little camp with all his supporters, it’s going to be all of my supporters.”
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