For Josh McCulloch, it was a "very surreal" moment.
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Seeing his name at No. 19, in the latest WBC Muay Thai lightweight world rankings, was not unexpected. But that seemingly did nothing to dull its effect on him.
Eight years after the Tamworthian, 22, walked into Chaffey's Martial Arts for his first Muay Thai lesson, he had received official confirmation that he had arrived on the world stage in a sport he has embraced with a religious-like fervour.
"Massive achievement for myself, very exciting times," the bank teller said, adding: "It's very surreal, very surreal."
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It was also "really cool", McCulloch said, "and it shows to myself that all the stars are starting to align after all the years of hard work.
"It's like the iceberg: no one really sees all the hard work before that [the achievements]."
The WBC ranking comes after a transformative 15 months for McCulloch, who announced himself in the pro ranks with an arresting KO in February last year. He then won his next five fights - four by stoppage, his last three victims Thai.
Next month, he will fight another Thai, Kiw Eikkasit, at the Melbourne Pavillion. It will be Eikkasit's 200th bout.
"We'll be going to Melbourne to wreck his party," McCulloch's trainer, Scott Chaffey, said.
Chaffey said the goal now was to position his charge for a shot at the WBC international lightweight belt - with the ultimate goal a world title fight.
He said of the WBC lightweight rankings: "When you start looking at all the different countries, you're seeing Thailand, Thailand, Thailand.
Obviously, America's in there and whatnot. And you've got this young Australian from the small country town of Tamworth. It's an amazing feat.
McCulloch - who won the prestigious WBC Nai Khanom Tom Challenge lightweight belt when he KOed Thai fighter Petsamrit with a right hook in Sydney last month - has 22 wins, two losses and two draws as a pro and amateur.
The former national amateur champion's last loss was in August 2016. He's on a 17-fight unbeaten run.
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