Son of a gun Darcy Ellis turned heads when his first career professional boxing match lasted all of 90 seconds before he landed the knockout blow.
It was enough for the Taylors Hill fighter to get a taste of what to expect going into his second professional bout against Thai-born Queenslander Chaiyan Sakkoed at the Melbourne Pavilion this Friday night.
“I landed that shot in the first round and that was all she wrote,” Ellis said.
“I was lucky enough in my first fight to have experienced people in my corner, so they were constantly sending me in the right direction.”
Interest in Ellis’s boxing career is heightened by his rich pedigree in the sport. The 21-year-old’s dad is Lester Ellis, a world champion of his generation.
He treats Barry Michael, another world champion, “as family”.
The boxing legends are on hand to offer Ellis advice, but keep their distance and let him land on his own feet in the sport.
Another reason is that Ellis is part of the Team Ellis team, which consists of Ellis’s cousin Heath, as trainer; brother Jake, as promoter and assistant trainer; and his mother Sharon, who he describes as “a blessing”, as the dietician.
Not once has Darcy second-guessed his decision to step into the ring, even if the first question asked to Lester is invariably whether he wanted his sons to follow in his footsteps.
“I love the lifestyle, I like the dedication and the rewards that come from boxing,” Ellis said.
“I want to be the type of fighter who is always in the gym, always ready, so when it’s time to fight I don’t have to go into a training camp because I’m always training, my weight is good and I’m always fit.
“I’m happy to put the work in to get the rewards and it makes me happy, so that’s why I do it.”
If Ellis is ever lacking motivation, he only needs to look into the family video collection for inspiration.
He has always seen Lester as his idol and enjoys hearing stories from way back about his dad’s glittering boxing career.
“I don’t really get over or get annoyed when people say ‘your dad did this’ or ‘your dad did that’ because my dad is my idol,” Ellis said.
“I watched my dad’s tapes every day and I probably annoy him more than anything. I reckon he’s probably sick of hearing about me nowadays when people talk to him about his son fighting!”
Ellis is focused on becoming the best fighter he can be. Whether it takes him all the way to the top or just on local pro fights in Melbourne, he is determined to maximise his talent.
For the next week, Ellis’s sole focus is on beating Sakkoed in their light welterweight showdown.
“It’s hard to think about the future when the fight is so close,” Ellis said.
Ellis, who trains at the Team Ellis Gym in East Keilor, will step into the ring in Flemington on Friday night with the full house sign likely to be up.
While he admits to a bit of pre-fight nerves, once he walks out to the roar of a 1500-strong crowd, he is in his own sporting heaven.
“I like it when there’s more people there, it’s more of a buzz and just more excitement,” Ellis said.
“In the change rooms you’re pretty nervous, but as soon as you walk in and hear ‘ding, ding, ding’ and the first round goes, pretty much everything is quiet and it’s him and me.”
