SINGAPORE - One year after turning professional, muay thai exponent Terrence Teo has captured his third championship belt after he emerged triumphant at the Johor Open Pro Muay Thai Championships last Saturday (Oct 8).

The 25-year-old Singaporean, who was defending his 69kg class title from 2015, defeated local hope Aiman (who goes by one name in fight circles) via a unanimous five-round decision at the Educity Sport Complex in Nusajaya in front of a crowd of about 1,000.

Teo said: "Going up against Aiman was like going up against a tank. This was definitely one of the most challenging fights in my career. I went in with a plan, stuck to it and I'm glad that everything worked out in the end."

His strategy was to frustrate Aiman and used low kicks to keep him at bay during the first three rounds before going on the offensive in the closing two rounds.

Teo began his martial arts training in 2011, but he injured his shoulder two years later, and started piling on the kilograms and tipped the scales at 95kg.

Incredibly, he managed to lose 26kg after he joined the Juggernaut Fight Club in May 2015 after completing his national service. Within a few months, he made a winning start on his pro debut at the Johor Open against Malaysian veteran Hafiz Kuda and added another title at this year's Singapore Fighting Championships (SFC) in June.

Teo started as an underdog against Aiman, a veteran of more than 100 fights and winner of 10 championship belts, but his coach Arvind Lalwani, founder of Juggernaut Fight Club and SFC president, was unconcerned.

He said: "None of us were worried for Terrence as we knew he would give his all. He trains very hard and I'm sure he will use this opportunity to spur him on to fight even harder as a professional fighter for more title belts on the international stage."

It was a sentiment Teo shared. He said: "I am glad I get to go home with this title and I look forward to more fights over the next few months."