Latest news with #DavidNyika
NZ Herald
6 days ago
- Sport
- NZ Herald
Boxing: Nyika's mental resilience to be tested in Sydney bout against Charalampous
There's never been any doubt about David Nyika's in-ring ability. But as the cruiserweight boxer steps into the ring tomorrow night against compatriot Nik Charalampous on the undercard of the Sonny Bill Williams-Paul Gallen bout in Sydney, his performance will be telling. The fight will determine whether the former Olympian
The Sun
08-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Sun
Love Island Australia star shares horrifying pics after her flat is broken into and graffitied by teenagers
star's plea Just months after she got engaged during a romantic proposal in Mexico LOVE Island Australia star Lexy Thornberry has shared horrifying photos after her home was vandalised by local teenagers. The 24-year-old, who recently moved into the property with her professional boxer fiance David Nyika, took to Instagram to urge locals with any information to get in touch. 3 3 Lexy - who starred in the 2021 series of Australian Love Island - shared snaps of the damage and said: 'Very upsetting. 'Please swipe up if you have any info.' She added: 'Neighbours saw six teenagers on bikes.' Just two weeks ago Lexy shared a photo showing her and 29-year-old David beaming as they posed next to a sold sign outside their home. In May the couple got engaged after New Zealander David got down on one knee during a romantic holiday to Mexico. He later revealed their big plans for the future, telling Woman's Day: 'I've been ready for my thirties for a couple of years now. 'I've got my chickens, my garden and my mowing equipment. I'm ready for kids and ready for a dog. I'm ready for the rest of life, man!' Lexi entered the Love Island Australia on day three of the 2021 series and coupled up with Ryan Reid. But she was dumped after being left single following the final recoupling and dumped from the show. Ryan, 26, had his head turned by Casa Amor bombshell Tayla Mellington, and Lexy later confessed she was stunned by this. She told WHO: 'I was very, very shocked because we were very strong. 'And he actually did tell me the day before Casa that he saw me in his life after the show, because that was one of the questions I asked on the compatibility test, which wasn't aired.'
Daily Mail
08-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Aussie reality TV star issues desperate plea after home is ransacked and graffitied with chilling message
Love Island Australia star Lexy Thornberry has issued a plea for help after her brand new home in Queensland was ransacked and graffitied by a group of local teenagers. The 24-year-old, who lives in Gatton with her professional boxer fiancé David Nyika, was left shaken after she arrived home at the weekend to find holes in her walls and the bedrooms trashed. The living room had been graffitied with a brazen warning: 'Ethan was here,' and 'Hunter was here.' Lexy turned to social media for help after the distressing incident. 'Gatton locals, swipe up if you know the teenagers who broke into our house a few days ago,' she wrote alongside several photos of the incident. From A-list scandals and red carpet mishaps to exclusive pictures and viral moments, subscribe to the DailyMail's new showbiz newsletter to stay in the loop. 'Very upsetting...' Lexy wrote as she photographed some of the damage. Lexy said that her neighbours had seen six teenagers on bicycles hanging around her property on the day of the incident. 'Keep a close eye on your kids please,' she added, before asking locals to help her identify the perpetrators. Gatton is a small town in the Lockyer Valley Region of Queensland, with a population of less than 8,000. Making matters worse, Lexi and her NZ-born fiancé appear to have only recently purchased the property. In a carousel of photos that Lexi posted to social media last week, the happy couple posed together in front of a Gatton Real Estate 'Sold' sign and proudly held up the keys to their first home. 'Your Home. Our community,' the slogan on the real estate sign reads. Lexy and David are also recently engaged, after the Kiwi boxer got down on one knee during a holiday to Mexico. David popped the question with a Tiffany ring at sunset in the Isla Mujeres. 'It's easy with Lexy. I spent almost eight years with the wrong people, I wanted to nail this one,' he told Woman's Day. Although the Kiwi boxer moved from England to Australia to train with Lexy's father and boxing trainer Noel Thornberry in 2022, it was the former Love Islander that made the first move. After watching David win bronze in the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, she slid into his Instagram DMs. And as fate would have it, David soon moved to Queensland to train with her dad on the family farm the following year.
NZ Herald
05-06-2025
- General
- NZ Herald
Boxing: David Nyika's second round at world title shot begins against journeyman Nik Charalampous
Take two on Kiwi boxer David Nyika's climb to the top of the cruiserweight division. The first run-through saw an earlier-than-expected shot at Aussie IBF champion Jai Opetaia in January, which ended in a brutal fourth-round knockout loss – the first of Nyika's professional career. Now, the 10-1 'Dave 2.0',
RNZ News
04-06-2025
- Health
- RNZ News
'My stocks only rose': David Nyika beaten but not broken
David Nyika, left, and Tommy Karpency at Duco Boxing Fight Night at the Viaduct Events Centre, Auckland on 14 September 2024. Photo: Andrew Cornaga / David Nyika's latest fight was not in the ring, but in his own head. The Kiwi cruiserweight is set to return to the ring for the first time since he was brutally knocked out by Jai Opetaia. The Olympic medalist will meet Kiwi journeyman Nik 'the Greek' Charalampous in Sydney on the undercard of Sonny Bill Williams vs Paul Gallen. As it will be his first bout since being finished for the first time, Nyika is unsure how his mind will react in the ring. "If I do show flecks of uncertainty or hesitation, shit, maybe I should retire? I don't want to be in this sport forever. It's a dangerous sport, but I know I've got the goods," he said. Nyika admitted that after such a savage stoppage the self doubt can't help but creep in a bit. "I disconnected. I just unplugged and when I started training camp again, it was like, 'oh wow, you're going to do this again? Are you David?'" he said. "Those skeletons in the closet come creeping out and they're like, 'hey man, remember last time we did this?'" "Of course there are going to be doubts. Of course it's going to be difficult, but this is a difficult sport. It's hard. I respect my health and I appreciate my brain. So, if I can't get through this, or if I look a mess on fight night, maybe I shouldn't be here. It's up to me to prove to the world that I'm here to beat the best." Despite the setback, Nyika hasn't shifted the goal posts. "I know I'm up there with the best in the world, and I proved that against Jai. As disappointing as the outcome was, my stocks only rose after that fight." Nyika said he felt no fear from Charalampous as the two squared off on Wednesday in Auckland. "Nothing. He's dead behind the eyes. Nick's been here before. This isn't Nick's first big test. So yeah, case in point, he's been the distance with Jai over tyre. He's the real deal and that he won't be overruled by the occasion or anything. So I've got a real life that I have to catch." Charalampous has labelled Nyika a hype job and believes he will officially end Nyika's career. "I think Nyika is an overrated pretty boy. One of us went 10 rounds with Jai, the other got stopped. I'm ready to go hard. I think he's just had everything handed to him on a platter, when he first stepped up to fight adversity, he went to sleep." Australian Jai Opetaia knocks down opponent David Nyika of New Zealand during the Ring Magazine and IBF World Cruiserweight title fight in Gold Coast, 2025. Photo: AAP / Despite the trash talk, Nyika has no ill feelings towards his opponent. "It's all complimentary. It's all a compliment to me. I like Nik. He's a top competitor. I've sparred him in the past. Last time would have been 10 years ago. I'm appreciative for him to take the fight." Instead, Nyika is focussed on to reminding the world of his potential. "I want everybody to tune in because this is going to be probably my best opportunity to actually showcase my ability. The fight against Jai, it was a whirlwind and as much as I can take away from that, I didn't get to show my full repertoire, my whole arsenal. I know that Nik's going to bring plenty of challenges and he's an awkward, crafty, difficult fighter. I just have to go in there with the right game plan, but I know I can hurt him." The pair have sparred in the past, and Nyika does not expect much progression from his opponent. "He's a crafty operator as well. I think I've changed and grown a lot since we last sparred. I don't imagine he's done much growing in that time." To fight on the same card as Sonny Bill is a special moment for Nyika. "I don't really subscribe to that rivalry per se, but I know a lot of other people do and I really like Sonny. He's taught me some really good values in life. So he's got my full support and I know he's an incredible athlete. I think naturally Paul Gallen is the better fighter, but I believe that Sonny Bill is the better athlete and I think that will prevail on the night." The 29-year-old still has his eyes firmly on a world title. "I'm young, hungry. I don't have a family to provide for, I will very soon but right now I can be selfish, I can be hard-headed, I can accomplish anything right now, and it's just a matter of following the necessary processes and just trusting that process because I know I've got the goods, I know I'm with the right people." As for a rematch with Opetaia? "That Post-It note hasn't come down off my mirror. I've still got my eyes on that prize. The route has changed, it wasn't meant to be the way it was. Whatever will be will be, and it wasn't on the night. So I still want that fight and whenever, wherever, I want to be prepared and I need better preparation for that fight. I had three weeks notice but I went in with full confidence and I'll always believe in myself."
