The purple-grey 5cm scar on Hemi Ahio's chest sits not all that far from his heart.
"They put one in me," the 25-year-old Aucklander who would be New Zealand's second genuine heavyweight prospect says of the stab wound. Ahio headlines the Mahindra Super 8 Fight Night, an intriguing card also featuring two four man tournaments, a Monty Betham title shot and a heavyweight battle between league stars Paul Gallen and Bodene Thompson.
With tonight's event likely to attract a decent audience due to the fact it is free to Sky subscribers, the NZNBF title fight is Ahio's coming out party. Three years ago a bunch of dudes approached him and asked where he was from. He said "Mangere", a mistake given he was in Otahuhu at the time.
"They came over and one guy threw a punch. Another guy came, I thought he came to throw a punch, but he stuck it in me. I looked down and was like 'oh'. There were about six of them. I got two of them ..."
Auckland born to Tongan parents, Ahio wanted to join the army but failed the English test. He sat around home getting drunk for a bit before his uncle marched him into a gym to meet Lolo Heimuli, the legendary Auckland trainer whose charges include MMA star Mark Hunt. Ahio was green as they come. But he could hit. Heimuli has ridden him hard. Keep hitting and you'll see your full potential, he tells Ahio.
