No pain, no gain

DETERMINED: Shailer Park's Carl Toomey during training in Thailand. Photo supplied.

SHAILER Park's Carl Toomey knows all about pain.

And not just the kind he endures while competing in the brutal sport of Mixed Martial Arts cage fighting.

Ahead of his long-awaited return to the cage this Friday, after four years since his last professional fight, Toomey, 38, revealed to The Reporter a serious illness threatened to end any hopes of him returning to the sport.

“Early in 2008 after six months of training to mount a comeback, I was struck with a chronic illness,” Toomey explained.

“I had a bad sinus infection, which after 12 months and a dozen courses of antibiotics and other powerful drugs, required surgery or it was going to kill me.

“At this point I wasn't worried about fighting, I just wanted my health back.

“It took another six months of recovery and after the operation it left me weak.

“This was very depressing after being strong and fit my whole life.”

Following a strenuous strength and conditioning program, Toomey gradually returned to normal health and is now eager to re-ignite his fighting career.

In his return fight, Toomey, branded Tombstone, will trade blows with undefeated 22-year-old James Thompson, in a tantalizing match-up on the inaugural Nitro MMA card at Sleeman Sports Complex, Chandler this Friday.

The nightclub crowd controller and father of two usually trains at Muay Thai Mulisha gym at Munrueben with newly crowned world champion Chris Johnstone.

But to ensure he would be returning to the cage in the sort of form that saw him once be crowned XFC Middleweight Champion and chalk up an impressive professional record of 12 wins, two losses and 10 knockouts, Toomey travelled to Thailand to get ready for Friday's fight.

“I knew at my age this was my last chance to fight competitively and needed to take some drastic measures so I decided to go train in Thailand,” he said.

“I trained there for 30 days, twice a day, two to three hours per session, seven days a week in 40 degrees heat.

“I now have corporate sponsorship with Future First investments and they paid for me to return to Thailand to prepare for this fight.”