Cricket
Racing
Rugby
League
Motorsport
Football
Golf
Combat Sports
Basketball
Tennis
Other Sports
Sport Nation
Kickboxing prodigy to test wares in boxing ring at unique new BX-9 event
Stephen Foote • June 23rd, 2025 4:30 pm
Photo: Supplied
One of New Zealand's fastest rising combat practitioners will test his hands in a different kind of forum at the latest BX-9 event in Auckland on Sunday.
After taking the nation's kickboxing scene by storm, Titus Proctor will step inside the ring and strap on a larger sized glove as part of the new fight series.
BX-9's unique semi-pro format features fully sanctioned 3 x 3-minute rounds - officially recorded on BoxRec as 'Sub-Pro'. This allows top-tier amateurs and cross-code athletes to gain professional-grade experience without affecting their official professional record.
The concept is designed to encourage high intensity action and eliminate the "slow build-up and cautious point-scoring" which can often plague the traditional 10-round-plus fights, while avoiding the "protective matchmaking" and record-padding inherent with the sport.
At just 20 years old, Proctor has captured both South Pacific and WKBF world kickboxing championships in the 75kg super middleweight division to hang alongside a staggering 11 at national level.
On the back of his triumph at King in the Ring late last year - New Zealand's premier kickboxing tournament - Proctor has risen to No. 5 in the WBC's super middleweight division.
"People talk about levels, I'm building my own," says Proctor.
"This isn't about hype. I'm 20, already beating seasoned veterans, and I'm just getting started. World domination? That's not pressure - that's the blueprint."
Eugene Bareman on the stakes involved in Kai Kara-France winning the UFC flyweight world title | Fight Club
Fighting out of Hamilton's Tihipuke Muay Thai gym, Proctor has his sights set on carving himself a path to ONE Championship, which has arguably become the planet's most competitive testing grounds for kickboxers.
But first, he'll test his mettle against Iggy Phillips, a former WBC Muay Thai NZ Champion whose unorthodox fight style has proved the downfall of many.
"Titus is the most naturally explosive athlete I've ever worked with," says coach Darryl Dawson. "His work ethic is relentless, a ruthless mindset, and he learns fast.
"People see the aggression, but what they don't realise is how smart he is in the ring. He's only 20, and he's already cleaning up veterans. This is just the beginning."
Joining Proctor atop the card are a pair of intriguing women's fights, led by another kickboxing convert in former ONE Championship fighter Nyrene Crowley, who'll take on Sarah Linton.
"I've been in this sport for over a decade," said Crowley. "I've fought some of the world's best, but BX-9 offers something totally fresh.
"I'm excited to test myself in this new format and show how far women's combat sports have come. I'm hungry, I'm sharp, and I'm ready."
Crowley's head coach, City Kickboxing head honcho Eugene Bareman, said BX-9 is the ideal platform to showcase some of the rising women's talent in Aotearoa.
"The rise of female combat athletes isn't coming - it's here," says Bareman. "These young women train harder than most male pros.
"They don't just show up; they come to bang. The sport is evolving because of them, and anyone watching BX-9 will see it with their own eyes."
The action kicks off at Manukau's Due Drop Event Centre at 3pm, Sunday, or stream the entire event here.
