Tyrone Spong
Encyclopedia
Tyrone "King of The Ring" Spong (born September 3, 1985) is a Dutch
-Surinamese kickboxer. He is the reigning WFCA Cruiserweight Muay Thai
and the former It's Showtime 95MAX World champion, fighting out of Fighting Factory Carbin in Amsterdam
, Netherlands
.
As of May 2011, Spong is ranked the #7 heavyweight in the world by LiverKick.com.
. In 1990 at the age of 5, he moved to the Netherlands
with his family.
In 2003, his first year as a pro, he made his mark winning 12 fights a year. In 2004, he fought against Rafi Zouheir at the Battle of Zaandam and won his first European Muay Thai Title (WKN). In 2004 Spong also visited Japan to compete in Shootboxing where he lost to Ryuji Goto. Goto suplexed him in the final seconds of the fight to earn a well-received unanimous decision. His next fight in April 2005, was against Belgian Mohammed Ouali for another European Title (WPKL). Spong won the fight by unanimous decision.
In December, 2005 at the A-1 Combat Cup in Duisburg
, after three consecutive KO's in one night, Tyrone Spong won his first tournament Championship.
In 2006 Spong had two his biggest victories of his young career, KO wins over Muay Thai veteran Joerie Mes
and two weeks later knocking out K-1
superstar Kaoklai Kaennorsing
from Thailand
in a first round.
On March 28, 2009, Spong participated in the first ever K-1 Heavyweight (-100 kg) Title tournament, held in Yokohama, Japan. He was beaten by Gokhan Saki
in semifinals by right hook KO of the extra round.
Spong finally met rival Nathan Corbett
at Champions of Champions II in what was widely considered a battle between the two best Muay Thai
fighters in the world at their weight class for the W.M.C. world title -93 kg. The fight was a close affair with Spong knocking Corbett down earlier on in the fight only for it to end with a controversial decision. In the third round Corbett managed to knock Spong out with a huge right hook causing the referee to stop the fight. However, due to the referee's misleading hand signals, Corbett rushed back in to knock Spong down once more, not sure that the fight had been stopped. After considerable confusion the fight was declared a no contest instead of a Corbett KO win.
After defeating the Worlds heavyweight champion, Kyotaro he fought Jerome Le Banner
in April 2010. Similar to the Nathan Corbett fight Spong broke his right hand in the first round and was knocked down. Despite coming back strongly he lost by decision. At the end of the year he qualified for the K-1 World Grand Prix 2010 Final
, defeating veteran Ray Sefo
in an elimination match, only to lose to eventual winner Alistair Overeem
at the quarter final stage in what was a more competitive fight than most initial thought - as Overeem was much the bigger fighter. At the start of 2011, Spong had to vacate the It's Showtime
95MAX world title due to a number of issues such as not having had a title defense in the allocated two years and his management stating that he had moved up in weight to fight as a heavyweight.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
-Surinamese kickboxer. He is the reigning WFCA Cruiserweight Muay Thai
Muay Thai
Muay Thai is a combat sport from Thailand that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. It is similar to other Indochinese kickboxing systems, namely pradal serey from Cambodia, tomoi from Malaysia, lethwei from Myanmar and muay Lao from Laos...
and the former It's Showtime 95MAX World champion, fighting out of Fighting Factory Carbin in Amsterdam
Amsterdam
Amsterdam is the largest city and the capital of the Netherlands. The current position of Amsterdam as capital city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands is governed by the constitution of August 24, 1815 and its successors. Amsterdam has a population of 783,364 within city limits, an urban population...
, Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
.
As of May 2011, Spong is ranked the #7 heavyweight in the world by LiverKick.com.
Biography and career
Tyrone Spong was born in SurinameSuriname
Suriname , officially the Republic of Suriname , is a country in northern South America. It borders French Guiana to the east, Guyana to the west, Brazil to the south, and on the north by the Atlantic Ocean. Suriname was a former colony of the British and of the Dutch, and was previously known as...
. In 1990 at the age of 5, he moved to the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
with his family.
In 2003, his first year as a pro, he made his mark winning 12 fights a year. In 2004, he fought against Rafi Zouheir at the Battle of Zaandam and won his first European Muay Thai Title (WKN). In 2004 Spong also visited Japan to compete in Shootboxing where he lost to Ryuji Goto. Goto suplexed him in the final seconds of the fight to earn a well-received unanimous decision. His next fight in April 2005, was against Belgian Mohammed Ouali for another European Title (WPKL). Spong won the fight by unanimous decision.
In December, 2005 at the A-1 Combat Cup in Duisburg
Duisburg
- History :A legend recorded by Johannes Aventinus holds that Duisburg, was built by the eponymous Tuisto, mythical progenitor of Germans, ca. 2395 BC...
, after three consecutive KO's in one night, Tyrone Spong won his first tournament Championship.
In 2006 Spong had two his biggest victories of his young career, KO wins over Muay Thai veteran Joerie Mes
Joerie Mes
Joerie "The Shark" Mes is a Dutch former welterweight kickboxer, fighting out of Mike's Gym in Amsterdam. He is former Dutch and European Muay Thai champion who later competed in K-1 MAX. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest combination specialists in kickboxing history.-Biography and...
and two weeks later knocking out K-1
K-1
K-1 is a defunct world-wide kickboxing promotion based in Tokyo, Japan founded by Kazuyoshi Ishii, a formerKyokushin karate practitioner. K-1 combines stand up techniques from Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo, Savate, San Shou, kickboxing, western-style boxing, and other martial arts...
superstar Kaoklai Kaennorsing
Kaoklai Kaennorsing
Kaoklai Kaennorsing is a Thai light heavyweight Muay Thai kickboxer. He is also the winner of K-1 World Grand Prix 2004 in Seoul tournament, and the former champion of Rajadamnern Stadium at two weight divisions, and the current world champion of WBC Muay Thai at light heavyweight...
from Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
in a first round.
On March 28, 2009, Spong participated in the first ever K-1 Heavyweight (-100 kg) Title tournament, held in Yokohama, Japan. He was beaten by Gokhan Saki
Gökhan Saki
Gökhan Saki is a Turkish-Dutch heavyweight kickboxer, fighting out of Golden Glory Gym in Breda, Netherlands...
in semifinals by right hook KO of the extra round.
Spong finally met rival Nathan Corbett
Nathan Corbett
Nathan "Carnage" Corbett is an Australian Heavyweight kickboxer, fighting out of Urban Fight Gym, Gold Coast, Australia. He was the WMC Muaythai Cruiserweight World champion and K-1 Scandinavia 2007 tournament champion. As of April 2010, he is the number 1 ranked contender in the WBC Muay Thai...
at Champions of Champions II in what was widely considered a battle between the two best Muay Thai
Muay Thai
Muay Thai is a combat sport from Thailand that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. It is similar to other Indochinese kickboxing systems, namely pradal serey from Cambodia, tomoi from Malaysia, lethwei from Myanmar and muay Lao from Laos...
fighters in the world at their weight class for the W.M.C. world title -93 kg. The fight was a close affair with Spong knocking Corbett down earlier on in the fight only for it to end with a controversial decision. In the third round Corbett managed to knock Spong out with a huge right hook causing the referee to stop the fight. However, due to the referee's misleading hand signals, Corbett rushed back in to knock Spong down once more, not sure that the fight had been stopped. After considerable confusion the fight was declared a no contest instead of a Corbett KO win.
After defeating the Worlds heavyweight champion, Kyotaro he fought Jerome Le Banner
Jérôme Le Banner
Jérôme "Geronimo" Le Banner , is a French kickboxer and K-1 superstar, famous for his aggressive fighting style and knockout power....
in April 2010. Similar to the Nathan Corbett fight Spong broke his right hand in the first round and was knocked down. Despite coming back strongly he lost by decision. At the end of the year he qualified for the K-1 World Grand Prix 2010 Final
K-1 World Grand Prix 2010 Final
K-1 World Grand Prix 2010 Final was a martial arts event that was held by the K-1 on Saturday, December 11, 2010. It was the 18th K-1 World GP Final, the culmination of a year full of regional elimination tournaments...
, defeating veteran Ray Sefo
Ray Sefo
"Sugar" Ray Sefo is a New Zealand kickboxer, boxer and mixed martial artist. He is five time Muay Thai World champion and eight time K-1 World Grand Prix Finals tournament participant, currently living in Las Vegas, Nevada and training with Xtreme Couture.He holds notable wins in the K-1 over...
in an elimination match, only to lose to eventual winner Alistair Overeem
Alistair Overeem
Alistair Cees Overeem is a British born Dutch mixed martial artist and kickboxer, signed to the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He is the former Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion, Dream Interim Heavyweight Champion, K-1 World Grand Prix Champion, and made history by being the only fighter in combat...
at the quarter final stage in what was a more competitive fight than most initial thought - as Overeem was much the bigger fighter. At the start of 2011, Spong had to vacate the It's Showtime
It's Showtime
It's Showtime is a kickboxing and mixed martial arts promotion based in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It was founded by Simon Rutz in 1998 and held its first show in 1999. They are known to cross promote their events with K-1 and other European promotions from Italy, Belgium and England...
95MAX world title due to a number of issues such as not having had a title defense in the allocated two years and his management stating that he had moved up in weight to fight as a heavyweight.
Titles
- 2008 1st It's Showtime World 95MAX champion (Defense: 0)
- 2008 W.F.C.A. Thaiboxing World Cruiserweight champion (Defense: 1)
- 2008 KO World Series '08 Oceania winner
- 2007 1st SLAMM Events 79 kg class champion (Defense: 0)
- 2005 A1 World League winner
- 2005 W.P.K.L. European Middleweight champion (Defense: 0)
- 2004 W.K.N.World Kickboxing NetworkThe World Kickboxing Network is a professional kick boxing and thai boxing organization and is one of the largest professional sanctioning organizations in the world, represented in more than 100 countries....
Thaiboxing European Middleweight champion (Defense: 0) - M.T.B.N. Muay Thai Dutch Junior class -66 kg class champion (Defense: 0)
Personal Life
Spong is married with three children. He is an avid lover of animals, as is evidenced by the majority of his tattoos. He is the owner of several pit bull terriers, which he bred himself. Spong has trained in America with Floyd Mayweather Sr. He is friends with mixed martial artists Rashad Evans and Mo Lawal. He has helped both of them prepare for some of their fights. Spong trains his physical conditioning at the legendary ReAT Sports athletic performance facility in Amsterdam, under the world renowned Strength & Conditioning specialist Rayen Bindraban.Fight record
| Kickboxing record | |
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Legend: |
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See also
External links
- Profile at K-1K-1K-1 is a defunct world-wide kickboxing promotion based in Tokyo, Japan founded by Kazuyoshi Ishii, a formerKyokushin karate practitioner. K-1 combines stand up techniques from Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo, Savate, San Shou, kickboxing, western-style boxing, and other martial arts...