THUNDER BAY – A punishing first round and a powerful finish propelled local fighter Mitchell Spence to victory Saturday night as kickboxing made its return to Thunder Bay for the first time in 19 years.
The 21-year-old fighter who grew up in Fort Hope won a unanimous decision over Winnipeg’s Kevin McCarthy, each judge giving him a slim 29-28 scoring advantage.
Spence, whose sign-carrying family and friends filled the Da Vinci Centre for the event, said the victory boiled down to believing in himself before entering the ring.
“I was really confident going into the fight,” he said. “Once I got those first combos in, I was very comfortable and very at ease in there.”
The former Churchill Collegiate and Vocational Institute student said he’s been training at the sport for the past five years, taking it up at the tender age of 16.
He said he began kickboxing as a way to build confidence and prove he could succeed inside the ring.
“What attracted me to getting into the ring was just getting to show my skills and abilities coming out of Thunder Valley Martial Arts,” Spence said.
Seeing kickboxing back in Thunder Bay, essentially for the first time in his lifetime, is fantastic, Spence said.
Mixed martial arts were illegal in Ontario until 2010, forcing competitors to head to other jurisdictions to fight. Locally, that meant heading south of the border.
Still, it was nearly seven years before combat sports returned to the Lakehead.
Spence said the chance to compete in front of his family and friends was the opportunity of a lifetime.
“I feel very special to be a part of this event. It’s the first event in a while here in Thunder Bay and I’m very glad to be a part of it,” he said.
Saturday’s event was put on by Mitz Bandiera, who was heavily involved in similar events before the province stepped in nearly two decades ago, forcing local cards to Grand Portage.
It’s been three years since Bandiera put on an event, and he said it was long beyond time return the sport to Northern Ontario.
“This is kind of a refresher, bringing it back to Thunder Bay,” he said.
“I know that boxing has tried to do it occasionally and they’ve promoted some cards. Kickboxing, I promoted it a long time ago and I’m known for that. I’m just trying to rehash everybody into the sport again.”
Former Lakehead University wrestler Emma Horner, who won silver at the 2016 CIS wrestling championships, was supposed to take part in the inaugural event, but injuries to the card’s first two fighters – Horner was slated to take on the winner later in the evening – left no opponent to fight.
Horner said she’s hopeful to make her Thunder Bay debut in the fall.
