Joel Camilleri has pushed open the doors to the boxing world.
The Keilor Downs fighter had a career night on June 1 when he claimed the Victorian state super welterweight title belt with a majority decision win over Taiwan-born Sydneysider Yao Yi Ma at The Melbourne Pavilion.
Camilleri knew victory would create a pathway to bigger fights, but expected it to be more on a local scale, such as challenging for a national title.
However, Camilleri has received news in recent days that he is being sought-after for a fight that would have an impact even beyond our borders.
The 27-year-old was tight-lipped about what his manager has lined up, but said it would be a huge stepping stone for his career.
“This win opens up big doors for me,” Camilleri said. “We’ve got an announcement coming out soon that we’ll be fighting for a regional title, but I can’t say much more.
“It will be the biggest fight of my career, it’s going to be a career defining fight.”
Camilleri is over the moon after toppling Ma.
The fight was a re-match between the combatants after their clash late last year was ruled a majority draw.
It took everything in Camilleri’s arsenal to overcome Ma, who he has great respect for as an opponent.
“I had some unfinished business and I got the job done – it was a great victory,” Camilleri said. “He’s never been stopped, he’s six-foot-two, tough as nails and you can hit him all day but he’s not going to go down.
“What I did was out-boxed him.
“I used my jab, punched and moved and made sure I wasn’t a sitting target.
“I just stuck to the game plan, I had more in the engine and I landed the better shots and was the smarter fighter on the night.”
Camilleri, trained by Sam Labruna at Team Labruna Gym in East Keilor, had the perfect preparation for his fight.
It is the first time in a year that Camilleri can say that, having been weighed down by anxiety and stress, or “just taking on too much”.
Camilleri said he has found a balance in his life and is feeling 100 per cent.
“This time I was much better conditioned and better prepared,” Camilleri said.
“I’ve been getting stomach issues for 10 to 12 years, anxieties whenever I ate food about whether it was going to digest properly and then I’d get an upset stomach.
“I’m feeling much better now.”
Camilleri has some great people in his corner.
He is grateful to have Labruna as his trainer.
“He’s like a second dad to me,” Camilleri said. “When I get into the ring, my life is on the line, he’s the only guy I can truly trust with my life.”
Camilleri is a relief school teacher by day.
He teaches at local schools Keilor Downs College, Braybrook College and Copperfield College and has built up a legion of fans.
“I can’t hide it from the kids,” he said with a laugh. “They’re my biggest supporters, they follow my fan page.”
Camilleri has big goals for the remainder of 2018.
“I want to climb to the top two or three in Australia by the end of the year and top 100 in the world,” he said.
