Colton Bilawchuk craves what every other boxer in the gym at Spruce Capital Warriors Boxing Club has been missing.
He wants to show the folks at home what he's been doing with a lot of his free time, learning the ropes as a boxer the past 2 1/2 years. It's a fact of life for fighters in Prince George, where opponents are few and far between. If you want to play, you have to travel.
For Bilawchuk, 22, and his Warrior clubmates, that usually means a trip to Vancouver or Edmonton, where fight cards happen at least once every month. But the next time he steps into the ring for an amateur, he won't have far to go. He's fighting in the main event when the Warriors host Real Fights, a 12-fight card set for Saturday, June 4 at the College of New Caledonia gym.
"I feel great about fighting at home, I've been bragging to all my friends how much fun it is, they never see me and my family never sees me -- I'm always training," said Bilawchuk. "All this effort goes into this and I always go away to fight. I never get to show my family and friends what I'm sacrificing for my boxing and now they will get to see why. I can't wait to give them a good show and show that boxing is alive in P.G."
Bilawchuk has been working hard on his conditioning and says he's much better-prepared than he was when he made his fight debut. His confidence is sky-high heading into his match against a yet-to-be-determined opponent from East Vancouver Boxing Club.
Bilawchuk last fought Jan. 29 at Cascades Casino in Langley, where he scored a three-round unanimous decision over a Maple Ridge opponent. His only other fight came in April 2015, when he lost a decision to Dieter Vincent of Victoria in Langley. He was scheduled to fight last August in Langley but failed the pre-fight medical when the doctor detected a heart murmur. It turned out to be a minor condition and Bilawchuk has put that behind him.
To be part of the main event, having had just two fights, puts added pressure on Bilawchuk, but he says he's ready for it. His fight is scheduled for three two-minute rounds.
"Wayne (coach Sponagle) knows my experience and he knows I can handle it and this will be a good test for me," he said. "As long as the other kid is willing to fight then the fans are in for a good show. I have a lot of heart and I won't let down. I just want as many fans as possible to come and cheer me on."
Jason Nahal, 16, who joined the Spruce Capital gym at the same time as Bilawchuk, is looking for his first win after starting out with three losses. He's matched with a Kamloops opponent in what will be his last chance to fight for Prince George as his hometown before he moves with his family to Edmonton next month. He's coming off a loss to Manraj Dhanoa of Vancouver on Jan. 29 and he promises he'll be ready when he steps up to the ring at CNC.
"Everyone I know is going to be there first my first hometown fight," said Nahal, a Grade 11 student at Cedars Christian school. "I feel I was way better than all three [people I fought, just the nerves got to me. I needed to do better conditioning, I would win the first round and lose the next two. I feel my conditioning is way better now.
"Boxing is all on you. It builds your confidence and helps with your focus in everything you do. When I first came I never thought it would be this hard but now that I've been through it all, it is a tough sport. The training, the running, all that, you have to be 100 per cent into it."
Five other Spruce Capital fighters will be making their home fight debuts. Cory Mackie, 28, joined the club a couple months ago, and he comes with a kickboxing background. Another 28-year-old, cruiserweight Lyndon Creyke, is back boxing after a 10-year-absence. He built a 7-1 record before he left the sport.
At the other end of the age spectrum, the club has uncovered a couple of diamonds in the rough -- 12-year-old Jacob Ross, who started training last October, and 13-year-old Sbalyan (Sbaly) Allen who started boxing in January. Together, they have re-lit the flame in Spruce Capital head coach Sponagle, now in his 50th year of training boxers.
The card will also include 22-year-old Spruce Capital light heavyweight Marshall Cade, who will also take on a Kamloops opponent. Sponagle is hoping for a big crowd to bring out the best in the local fighters.
"I've been giving to the kids every night, four or five nights a week, for 50 years, and I just hope that for one night the people of Prince George come out to support these kids," Sponagle said. 'To be honest, I was in the boxing doldrums when Thomas (Speirs) and Marcus (Hume) stopped boxing, but Colton is ready to pick up where they left off in the amateur fighting. Colton lives the life and trains hard and gives boxing what it requires to be successful.
"Along with Colton, Jacob and Sbaly put some enthusiasm back into me. They're unbelievable, especially Sbaly. If he keeps going, he'll be one of the top Prince George fighters of all time. When Jacob and Sbaly spar, I'm in my glory."
Tickets for the card will be $15 (general admission and $20 (ringside), soon to be available at Tire Capital (777 Victoria St.) and Ave Maria (1638 20th Ave.) and Westwood Pub (233 Cherry Ave.).
