Central Whanganui gym Vulcan Martial Arts gym offers ju-jitsu, kickboxing and MMA

Matt McMeeking says Whanganui seems like a real fighting town. Photo / Bevan Conley

The top floor of a central Whanganui building has been transformed into a ju-jitsu, kickboxing and mixed martial arts hub.

Matt McMeeking opened Vulcan Martial Arts in Victoria Ave in October, with the 400sq m space quickly being filled with students, weights and heavy bags.

McMeeking is originally from Auckland, where he trained and instructed at the Shuriken MMA (mixed martial arts) gym.

He started boxing when he was 14 and has spent half his life “fixated” with his craft.

“Through that, I got into kickboxing, and then through that, I got into MMA,” McMeeking said.

“I didn’t know a lot of ju-jitsu back then so I had a few fights and got absolutely dominated. I was pretty against grappling at first, just because of my striking background, but I found a love for it. Now ju-jitsu is my main thing.”

Ju-jitsu is a ground-based martial art that features grappling, throwing and wrestling.

McMeeking, a bronze medallist at the 2012 Kickboxing Junior World Championships, said he moved to Whanganui to be closer to family.

The idea to open a gym in the city came about during a drive in the Far North with his brother, who already lives here.

“We were just spit-balling and then it was ‘Yep, let’s give it a go’.

“It’s all fallen into place. The cool thing about it is you just need a training partner. The human body is the only major piece of equipment you really need.”

Whanganui had welcomed him so far, he said.

“People are really friendly, that‘s the first thing I noticed when I got here - even handing out flyers amongst the community.

“Sometimes in Auckland, you get a bit of a cold shoulder but everyone here was super supportive.”

McMeeking said his fighting career was over for now - “I didn’t have that many brain cells to start with so I’ve got to protect them” - but he was keen to put a Vulcan team together.

Vulcan Martial Arts offers striking classes two days a week.

“It seems this is a real fight town.

“A few younger people have come in just out of school, looking for some direction, and a few have already had some kickboxing fights.

“They are pretty committed to the cause so we’ll get them into some competitive settings in 2024.”

He said cross-pollination with other gyms in the city was also important, with the possibility of creating a wider Whanganui team.

“There are a lot of good [trainers] in Whanganui with a lot of good things to teach everybody.”

The major card on the city’s fight calendar is Night of Assassins, organised by Assassins Muay Thai’s Kyle Gallacher.

Gallacher said this year it was “Whanganui versus everybody else”.

The city’s most famous mixed martial arts export is former UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) middleweight champion Israel Adesanya.

Combat training required “a different kind of energy system”, McMeeking said.

“There is the cardio aspect but it’s so easy to forget to breathe when someone is up in your face.”

At present, most of his curriculum is grappling-based - wrestling and ju-jitsu - but there are striking classes two times a week.

All ages are catered for.

There is also an open-mat session on Saturday mornings, with anyone welcome to give it a go.

“One night a week we put it all together and do a little bit of sparring,” McMeeking said.

“I think it’s important to cover all the bases, especially if you’re learning to fight for self-defence.

“We are putting together a kids’ corner with some couches and a TV, so the kids can watch Bluey while the parents train. We’ve got pool noodles and balls for them to play with as well. There is lots of space to run around.”

Vulcan Martial Arts is at 152 Victoria Ave, with entry via 76 Guyton St.

Mike Tweed is an assistant news director and 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.