In only his fourth amateur fight, Kyle, 16, recently won the Victorian Junior Intermediate 66kg title.

His trainer Dennis Beddoe said in three years Kyle hadn't missed a single training session.

"He just walked in the door and said he would like to learn it, he has never missed a training session," Mr Beddoe said.

"He is dedicated and wants to succeed. The heart is willing. I think he has improved his outlook on life. He hated school and when we set about training to win the title he set himself a goal.

"One was to win the title and the other was to finish year 11 and he is on the way to doing that."

Mr Beddoe said the image of boxing had changed and training was the most important part of any fight.

"You don't win the fight on the day, you win it at training and if you have done all the work it's just a formality of going in there and doing it," Mr Beddoe said.

"With amateur boxing there is a lot of rules and they do a terrific job with protection. It's computer scoring now and they have got four judges, one in each corner with a blue and red button. If a boxer does a good left jab they

push it, and three of the judges have to push it."

Kyle's training involves medicine-ball work and sparring in the ring up to four times a week.

Kyle's father, Lionel West, said boxing had helped to improve more than just fitness.

"When he was younger, in year nine, he took it up because I think a few of the bigger kids were picking on him and he did it more for self-defence," Lionel said.

"The more he did it the more he liked it. He's more confident in himself by a long way in terms of being outgoing and his approach to everything in general.

"I thought it would be a fad because he was 14 when he started but he knows how to dedicate his work ethic to it."