Tyrone Spong Ready for Remy Bonjasky, Eyes Pro Boxing Debut Alongside MMA Career

Some athletes are just born to fight, and Tyrone Spong is one of them.

Spong takes on kickboxing legend Remy Bonjasky on March 23 at Glory 5: London in a kickboxing match in the main event at London’s Excel Arena.

Spong and Bonjasky have parallels.  They were both born in Suriname, both moved to the Netherlands at the age of five, and both excelled at kickboxing.

“I respect Remy a lot.  He’s a legend in the sport.  I’m just looking forward to fighting him.  I like challenges, and I see him as a big challenge,” Spong told MMAWeekly.com.

Spong and Bonjaski know each other and are friends, but sometimes in the fight game, you have to fight your friends.

“I know Remy, and we talk, but this is work.  This is business.  We both chose this job.  This is part of the job.  You’ve got to fight people you know,” said Spong.

“He’s a very intelligent fighter.  I think his strongest weapons are his legs, so I’ve got to make sure I’m aware of his kicks and his knees.  That’s it,” said Spong about the match-up with Bonjasky.

“He has to be aware of everything.”

Spong made the transition from kickboxing to MMA at World Series of Fighting 1 in November 2012.  He plans to continue to bounce back and forth between kickboxing and MMA.

“This is how I’m going to do it for now.  I’m going to build up my experience in MMA, and at the same time fight my kickboxing fights and make some good money in my kickboxing fights.  We are fighters.  We have to pay the bills and everything.  That gives me the best of both worlds because at the same time I’m making some good money and I can build up my experience in MMA,” said Spong.

Training for a kickboxing fight isn’t the same as preparing for a MMA match, but Spong doesn’t have an issue with switching up his training depending on what type of fight he has scheduled next.

“For me, it’s not a big issue because I just fight.  It goes very natural, very automatic.  I don’t have a problem with it,” he said.

Spong trains out of the Blackzilians camp in Florida along with Rashad Evans, Alistair Overeem, Vitor Belfort, among a growing list of others.

“This is my home camp.  I do all my preparation here,” said Spong.

With an establish kickboxing career and a building MMA career, Spong plans to add professional boxer to his combat sports resume soon.

“Yes sir.  As a matter of fact, I’m working on it right now.  I’m training with one of the best boxing coaches in the world, Pedro Diaz.  We’ll see what happens.  I’m blessed with the talent and gifted with it, so why not?”

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