Growing up wrestling with two older brothers led Bryn Upham to the boxing ring.
The 20-year-old Airdrie native only began fighting two weeks ago, but has already competed in a pair of bouts, the most recent being a loss to Red Deer’s Roman Rzepkowski at Teofista Fight Night at Calgary’s Deerfoot Inn and Casino on Sept. 25.
“I didn’t make the adjustments early enough, as I didn’t know going in that he was a southpaw,” Upham said. “He came out with that fast left hand and took it to me hard the first couple rounds. But I finished strong and thought I won the third for sure. It was a good scrap. I just got out-boxed and wasn’t able to pull it off.”
It was Upham’s second fight in as many weeks, not common for boxing or any sort of mixed martial arts. He won his first fight after a stoppage in the first round and now sits with a 1W-1L record.
“I was healthy and just love getting in there, so it wasn’t really a big deal for me to go twice in two weeks,” he said. “I could probably fight this weekend too.”
Upham, a carpenter by day, just started training with Airdrie Boxing in May and said he is enjoying the camaraderie among the various fighters.
“It’s amazing actually,” he said. “And I wanted to compete, so I’ve been training pretty hard since then.”
He has two older brothers and said he grew up wrestling and fighting with them, so this became a natural fit. He also hopes to move into MMA as early as November and will continue to train three or four times per week.
“I’ve always liked the physical nature of fighting and figured it would be a good way to get in shape,” Upham said. “I definitely like boxing more than I thought I would. But I’ll hopefully be able to mix it up a little bit.”
