Grekoski Wins World Kickboxing Association Title

Having watched kickboxing on television, Spencer Grekoski thought it looked like fun and wanted to give it a try.

If that sounds like the recipe for trouble, it's only because it was. Grekoski has been a problem for everyone he's faced.

About a year and a half after starting to train for the sport - and only 10 months after his first fight - Grekoski won the World Kickboxing Association championship.

"I'm a little surprised," Grekoski said of earning the championship so quickly. "I progressed pretty quickly, I guess. 

"Honestly, I was in it for the experience. I was fighting people with a lot more experience than I had."

Fighting in the title match for those 15-17 year olds at 143 pounds, Grekoski knocked out his opponent from the Ukraine to win the championship last month. Earlier in the tournament, held in Karlsruhe, Germany, Grekoski also beat an opponent from the host country.

"The way I won the last match was fun," Grekoski said. "I won by TKO (technical knockout) with leg kicks."

That was even more fun than the reception hengets walking around town. Grekoski, 16, is currently a junior at East Brunswick High School.

"It can be a lot of fun," Grekoski said. "I enjoy it. People are like, 'there's the world champion.' The only thing I don't like about the sport is cutting weight. I walk around at 160 pounds and have to get down to 143 when I fight. That's not fun."

The morning after a fight also isn't exactly all puppy dogs and rainbows.

"As long as I can get up during a fight, I'll be fine," Grekoski said. "If someone really gets you clean, you'll go down. You know when you have been hit, but it really doesn't hurt you. Your adrenaline is going so you don't really feel it. After the match it feels horrible (laughs)."

Well, with one notable exception.

"When you win, it doesn't feel that bad," Grekoski said. "When you win the world championship, everything feels good."

Even literally at the top of his sport in the world, Grekoski doesn't plan to rest on his laurels. He will continue to train with Chris Tran and Joseph Pellegrino of Weapons9 Muay Thai in New Brunswick. After all, there are different age brackets and fights still out there.

Grekoski has a fight planned next month in Atlantic City. He'll also be competing in an event run by Chris Tran in December. In the latter meet, Grekoski will be fighting an adult.

"Doesn't really matter to me if I'm fighting an adult," Grekoski said. "I've fought them before and they have to be the same weight. 

"I'm trying to stay in shape. When the fights come out, I take them to get the experience. This is something I defeinitely want to keep doing. I'd like to be a professional one day."

Grekoski just keeps taking on challenges and knocking them off - and out - one at a time.

"I honestly had no idea what this would all be like," Grekoski said. "I didn't know how good I could be (as a kickboxer). The first time I realized I could probably be good was when I won my first match. I beat someone that already had four or five fights."

That first win was in October, 2010. Four months later, Grekoski won a tournament in Virginia, earning him the right to represent the United States in the World Championships. Grekoski traveled with his father (Joe) and trainer (Pellegrino) to Germany in August.

"That was just an awesome experience to represent your country," Grekoski said. "Everywhere you went people were looking at you with your jacket. It was really cool."

Now everywhere Grekoski goes around East Brunswick people can look at the world champion.