WATCH: Liam Harrison tells Paddy Pimblett how he beat a fighter almost twice his age as a teenager
ONE bantamweight Muay Thai star Liam Harrison has had a life of fighting most people wouldn't have imagined. At an age when we're just figuring out what we want to be when we grow up, 'The Hitman' was already fighting grown men in the ring.
In a recent clip Liam Harrison uploaded to his Instagram, the fighting Englishman spoke to fellow UK fighter Paddy 'The Baddy' Pimblett about the time he fought a grown man when he was just 15 years old.
"Good times 🤣 cheers @adammcgowan_ for the vid 👊🏻 #muaythai #liamharrison #paddypimblett"
Harrison recollected:
"When I was 15, I fought this kid who was 29 and he was kickboxing world champion. He never fought Thai boxinig though. He didn't know about leg kicks. I stopped him in round 2 with leg kicks."
He continued:
"We went upstairs to the bar and he went, 'I'll buy you a beer.' I went, 'I''ll have a pint.' And they woudn't serve me at the bar 'cause I have no ID. He went, 'How old are you?' I went, 'I'm 15.' Mate, he had a tear rolling down his face. He went, 'I can't show my face anymore around here.' I went, 'Mate, don't worry, everyone thinks I'm 18 or something. Don't worry about it mate.' [laughs]"
While there's no shame in losing to a really good fighter, it likely did sting a little bit to learn that they got knocked out by a kid who wasn't even allowed to have a driver's license.
We sincerely hope that Liam Harrison's opponent that night eventually got over the embarrassment.
Liam Harrison talks about how Muay Thai saved his life
Muay Thai was instrumental in saving the life Liam Harrison as a child. The fighting Englishman has spent most of his life as a Muay Thai practitioner, for which he is absolutely grateful.
Without the Art of Eight Limbs, Harrison believes his life would have gone downhill. In another video released on his Instagram account, the eight-time world champion spoke about his early life:
"Obviously, I've grown up in a rough area where honestly not many people make it out. A lot of my friends have ended up in jail. While they were out in the streets getting up to all sorts, I was in the gym."
As a young man, Harrison spent most of his time in the gym, avoiding the lure of gang-style life on the streets. His comrades, however, didn't find the same path and fell into bad company.
Harrison, who is now fighting at ONE Championship, continued:
"In the gym at 13, 14. Then at 15, I started to get really serious with my training... And that's when most of my friends - some were like getting sent off to jail and they're on the brink of either going one way or the other. I totally left all that... Lots to be thankful for from the life [Muay Thai] has given me."
Here's the video of 'The Hitman' sharing how Muay Thai saved him: