Speaker 1: Our next guest is Matthew Floyd. He was a former
Speaker 1: a PERF bikey. He was jailed for a brutal assault
Speaker 1: and he is now wanting to get into the bare
Speaker 1: knuckle boxing event at rac Arena. I believe has to
Speaker 1: be passed by the w A Combat Sports Commission, but
Speaker 1: I know that Matt's been a very successful boxer in
Speaker 1: his time.
Speaker 2: Yeah, and Johnes just online, good morning.
Speaker 3: Hey, Hey you god not bad. I mean, obviously we
Speaker 3: all have a pass we have to deal with. How
Speaker 3: do you view your past?
Speaker 4: It's an interesting one. It was like the guy was
Speaker 4: a pedophile.
Speaker 2: Wal Yeah, there's more to the story.
Speaker 4: Obviously, my past, the time I did, I don't think
Speaker 4: necessarily was just for that. I think it was for
Speaker 4: my whole pass and everything. So I was content with
Speaker 4: it all, and you know, I did it, did the
Speaker 4: time and everything, and since then I've just been fighting
Speaker 4: and trying my best right.
Speaker 3: So to be able to go into a combat zone,
Speaker 3: you need a license from the WA's Combat Sports Commission
Speaker 3: to be able to fight bare knuckled.
Speaker 2: Do you think you'll have any resistance?
Speaker 4: Yeah, it's been an on going battle of them. I
Speaker 4: don't think it was because of the the kidnapping of
Speaker 4: the pedophile. I think it was because it was on
Speaker 4: the news back then and other people followed, and I
Speaker 4: think they think it looked bad for the sport. Maybe
Speaker 4: if it wasn't on the news and things like that,
Speaker 4: I probably have been all right because we the people
Speaker 4: would have been able to fight, as we all know,
Speaker 4: and it's been more of a political thing and I
Speaker 4: could have probably fought for it more. But I sort
Speaker 4: of morally stood back and told them I wouldn't bother
Speaker 4: fighting in Perth. This was years ago. I thought in
Speaker 4: every other state. I thought, in all the other countries,
Speaker 4: I'm fighting on the biggest platforms in the world with
Speaker 4: no issues. You know. I just fought last week in
Speaker 4: England and so that's why I just didn't bother. But
Speaker 4: now I've been offered this big opportunity on a different platform.
Speaker 4: Connor himself said he'll come to the fight if I'm
Speaker 4: fighting on His trainer helps traine me and stuff like that.
Speaker 4: So it's a different.
Speaker 3: Reason, Connor McGregor, Yeah, right, and bear knuckle fighting.
Speaker 2: How does it differ from other forms of combat where
Speaker 2: we don't have boxing gloves.
Speaker 4: Yeah, yeah, you just don't have well, I think it's
Speaker 4: probably not as bad really, because we've boxing. You get
Speaker 4: knocked down, you get up, you get knocked down, you
Speaker 4: get up again, and it's like when you get hit
Speaker 4: with a surfboard, it's like a bit of a thump
Speaker 4: with the I think it's actually could be more impactful
Speaker 4: with the rubber. I think Ben Knuckle, it's like you
Speaker 4: don't really know about it till the next day. SOS
Speaker 4: just mixed opinions on it.
Speaker 1: So Matt, they've called an emergency meeting with the WA
Speaker 1: Combat Sports Commission to decide whether you can fight when
Speaker 1: where you know the outcome of whether you can or
Speaker 1: you can't.
Speaker 4: I was actually I just got back from Ireland yesterday.
Speaker 4: I was training over there. I actually came back today
Speaker 4: because they're gonna let me know today because when the
Speaker 4: meeting is going to be this week, so hopefully it'll
Speaker 4: be as soon as possible so I can get back
Speaker 4: into my training. But they'll give me an answer. By
Speaker 4: the sounds of it, yeah, this week.
Speaker 3: Other places that have let you fight, do they know
Speaker 3: your background, your history?
Speaker 2: Yeah?
Speaker 4: Of course, especially the UK a very supportive of it all.
Speaker 4: They're a lot more supportive of the story.
Speaker 2: And things like that.
Speaker 4: I've had no disaprete action during any of my fights.
Speaker 2: I've been respectful.
Speaker 4: Contestant, obviously, because they keep having me back in other countries,
Speaker 4: other states have asked me. Even like this Sunday, I'm
Speaker 4: supposed to be fighting on an Eddie Hern Mattroom card
Speaker 4: in Golko, so they all know. Everyone knows my storry.
Speaker 2: So you've turned your back on crime.
Speaker 3: That's pretty well, and you've put your attention into going
Speaker 3: down this road. Can we be reassured that you're on
Speaker 3: the straight and narrow Matthew.
Speaker 4: My last it was in twenty sixteen. Since I've been released,
Speaker 4: I've been just doing this. I try and do as
Speaker 4: much like hereout the community. I take kids trouble kids
Speaker 4: like myself off the street and I try helping them
Speaker 4: as much as I can. That's all I do. Man,
Speaker 4: there's no issue with me. I don't I'm not interested
Speaker 4: in any of that stuff.
Speaker 2: Yeah.
Speaker 1: Just just just so, matt was in and out of
Speaker 1: foster care, okay, and so you know he's bounced between
Speaker 1: homes and he was doing that from the age of ten,
Speaker 1: Is that right?
Speaker 4: Yeah?
Speaker 3: Yeah, So so what would you say to someone that
Speaker 3: wanted to become a member of a biking group.
Speaker 4: Now, I buy I try and I try and get
Speaker 4: the boys on the good path. I try and advise
Speaker 4: against all that. I trying to help them, you know,
Speaker 4: reach their goals, whether it's fighting or you know, some
Speaker 4: boys from my gym have gone to AFL and things
Speaker 4: like that. I try my best to guide them in
Speaker 4: the right direction. Obviously, I am I won't speak bad
Speaker 4: about that because of history and things like that, but
Speaker 4: I obviously I definitely try and encourage the boys to
Speaker 4: do different things.
Speaker 2: All right.
Speaker 3: Some people would say it's just violence in a different
Speaker 3: form fighting, whether it's U of C or beer knuckle fighting.
Speaker 3: Do you agree with that sentiment?
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think it's fine.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I know. I grew up growing up the way
Speaker 4: I grew up. I had quite a few fight street
Speaker 4: fight things like that. I think that. I mean, I
Speaker 4: don't wear head gear when I spa A lot of
Speaker 4: people do because I believe it's more impactful. Everyone just
Speaker 4: has different views on this.
Speaker 2: I think.
Speaker 4: It's I think it's actually probably less chances of concussions
Speaker 4: and brain injuries and things like that. But that's just
Speaker 4: like you know, an expert, all right.
Speaker 3: Well, We're watching with interest to see if they give
Speaker 3: you a permit.
Speaker 2: We appreciate you coming on this morning. Thanks for having
Speaker 2: me