Lawrence said he went for it in the third, backing Stuart up and forcing the referee to give him a standing eight count.
After three rounds, Stuart, the reigning European Masters champion, was handed his first defeat.
Lawrence is coached by decorated amateur boxer Egelani Taito and River City Boxing Club coach Eddie Tofa, with professional heavyweight Sale Oldehaver as his chief sparring partner.
“Sale has great amateur pedigree and is 2-0 as a pro,” he said.
“I’ve sparred numerous rounds with him and he’s just been awesome for me.
“It gives me that belief when I get in the ring. If I can stick in there with Sale, I can beat any of the guys in my age group.”
Lawrence travelled to Australia without Tofa and Taito and was paired with English coach Shaun Butler, who had 46 fights as an amateur.
“Egelani formulated a game plan for me and Shaun was in my corner on the night. I just had to go out there and perform.”
Lawrence entered the ring for the first time in 2021, winning his first fight by stoppage at a Whanganui Boxing Association (WBA) corporate event.
The following year, he won the super heavyweight gold title in the novice division at the Pan Pacific Masters Games, also on the Gold Coast.
“This time around, I was in the open division,” he said.
“You could be up against guys with 30 amateur fights or were professional boxers 25 years ago.
“Australia is right into the Masters boxing. It’s highly competitive and they don’t go there to mess about.”
His next fight is at the WBA’s corporate night on September 6 with a rematch against Feilding’s David Classen.
“It was shaping up to be a great fight last year but he damaged his knee,” Lawrence said.
“There’s a fight after that in Palmerston North and, hopefully, I’ll return to the Pan Pacific Games in November.
“If I get to 10 fights and do well, at least I can say I was a better-than-average fighter. It’s something I can look back on.”
Lawrence said he would continue to train and coach at the River City gym, regardless of whether he stopped fighting competitively.
He helps Tofa run classes at the gym and coaches new boxers preparing for their first fight at the corporate night.
“People tend to do their sports when they’re young - football, rugby, netball - but when they get into their 40s and 50s, they let themselves go,” Lawrence said.
“I want to be fit and healthy and I want to be able to do stuff - run up a set of stairs without being out of breath.
“Look at Eddie, he’s 65 and still bouncing around all over the place. He’s just great to be around.”
Mike Tweed is a multimedia journalist at the Whanganui Chronicle. Since starting in March 2020, he has dabbled in everything from sport to music. At present his focus is local government, primarily the Whanganui District Council.
