As it’s been for people everywhere, the COVID-19 pandemic has made it difficult for fighters to get matches over the last year, as many have been canceled or at the least, scaled back in a big way. But in March, four kickboxers based out of Camp Verde will be in action — albeit on the other side of the country.
Tanner Evans, Luke Amundson, Victor Romero and Tim Ruiz will be partaking in at least one fight each at the 4th Annual IKF [International Kickboxing Federation] Spring Eastern Muay Thai/Kickboxing Classic in Myrtle Beach, SC. The event will get underway on Friday, March 19, and will run through the weekend, coming to an end on Sunday, March 21.
For Amundson, a 15-year-old, it will be not only his first trip to this event but his debut fight.
“I’m very excited — it’s going to be fun,” he said. “It’s my first time fighting. I’ve been training for a year.”
It will also be the debut fight for the 23-year-old Ruiz.
At 31, Romero is a veteran of the fight game and is also excited to make the trip, succinctly saying, “I’m a fighter.”
At 14, Evans is the youngest of the group, but has fighting experience. He’ll be looking to improve upon an 0-2 record when he goes to South Carolina. One of those losses came on a previous trip to The Palmetto State.
“It’s my second time going,” he said. “I might have lost last time but I’m coming back bigger and stronger.”
The team will leave on Wednesday, March 17. They’ll spend a little time doing some sightseeing in South Carolina.
“We take them for a history lesson, like to Charleston, where the first bullet was fired from the Civil War,” said IKF promoter Sandee Olding, who, along with her husband Richard Williams, trains the local fighters. “It’s an excellent education.”
After that, it will be all business. The fighters will stay at the Landmark Resort in Myrtle Beach, which is also where the fights will take place.
Getting to fight is the culmination of a lot of training for all the fighters, who work to improve their craft on a daily basis.
“They train every day,” Olding said. “We’re really proud of this team.”
More information about the event can be found at akpromotions.org.
