A CATERHAM fighter says the "sky is the limit" for mixed martial arts as he prepares to fight in Redhill next month.
David Zetolofsky, who fights as a middleweight in the K1 form of kickboxing, is on the card for the mixed martial arts event at the Harlequin Theatre on Sunday, February 17.
And the 27-year-old, who is a full-time father, says he is looking forward to the buzz of a hometown crowd. He said: "I am sure it will spur me on having friends and family in the crowd and it should be a good night."
Zetolofsky, who trains under Extreme Fighters in Redhill, got into fighting about five years ago and has since travelled up and down the country to make a living and support his children.
"If I get asked to fight somewhere, I go there and do it," he said.
"It is my career and I don't really care if I go somewhere and get booed, that just spurs me on even more as I have got that stubbornness.
"Fighting is something I always wanted to do and having tried boxing, I saw a video of some guys cage fighting and thought I want to do that.
"So I got training and eventually I got to fight the guy I had been watching on YouTube."
And Zetolofsky says he aims to try and get as far as he can in the sport.
"Everyone's goal is to get to the Ultimate Fighting Championships," he said.
"For me, I would love to get there, but I will just keep doing it as long as I am healthy and able to and see where it takes me."
Beyond fighting, he hopes to be able to run his own gym, with Zetolofsky already helping to coach youngsters locally. "If I can get to the stage of making an impact in the local community, that would be great," he said.
Meanwhile, with the February event in Redhill already sold out, Zetolofsky said the ticket sales prove the demand there is for mixed martial arts as a mainstream sport.
"I think the way it is going, it is seen as more of a sport now than a spectacle.
"The days of it being viewed as thugs having a fight put a lot of people off of it.
"But I think it is becoming like boxing now and that will never die out.
"Mixed martial arts will one day get to that stage and I think now it is at that stage where it is make or break for the sport.
"I think the sky is the limit for it, but we will have to wait and see."
