Caleb Lovejoy at the Giants Boxing Academy. Photo / Rafaella Melo
Forget title belts or medals – for Hastings boxer Caleb Lovejoy stretch marks are his most treasured souvenir.
That’s because after an extraordinary transformation, both physically and mentally, the novice light-middleweight has shed almost half his body weight to finally become a winner in the ring.
In 2020, the 21-year-old weighed an unhealthy 125kg, was figuratively on the ropes and out for the calorie count.
However, today Lovejoy weighs in at a confident 65kg, and after four consecutive defeats, has finally achieved his first boxing victory in a Christchurch novice bout, winning a unanimous points decision against Jai Montenegro from Burnham.
Against a shorter opponent, Lovejoy concentrated on straight shots and not getting hit. He got clipped a couple of times but felt in control and his opponent was gassed by the second round.
“Still, I’ve had good rounds in the past and ended up losing,” Lovejoy said. “Until the referee raised my hand, I wasn’t sure.”
Then came winner’s delight.
“Oh man, what a good feeling – one I’ve been longing for. It’s awesome to know that the work I’ve been putting in is actually paying off.”
But the far more significant triumph for Lovejoy has been the knockout blow against his former eating habits, as “losing” became winning with his weight.
Where Lovejoy once had fat rolls, he now has a washboard.
Back in 2020 Lovejoy was so cavalier with his eating that he would get “puffed” waddling to his sleep-out, often raiding the pantry for more food on the way.
“I’d eat anything – chocolate, chips, biscuits, you name it,” Lovejoy lamented. ”Pies. I love my pies.
“My weight got to a point where I’d be out of breath just walking around. All I wanted to do was sit around and do nothing.”
Lovejoy had always been quite sporty, surfing and playing rugby.
“But my mental health and weight reached a point where all that stopped. By 2020, I was over it. Looking in the mirror was embarrassing. I started copping it from others. I knew I wasn’t myself.”
Caleb’s mother, Leah, said weight had always been a challenge for Caleb.
“In his early years, he would yo-yo with his weight, and we always had to work to help him make weight for rugby,” she said. “During his later teen years, he seemed to gain a lot of weight, which was hard to watch and difficult to stop.”
But when Caleb’s determination to lose weight appeared genuine, his parents agreed to hire a personal trainer and Davis Ataera quickly became a superstar in the Lovejoy family.
Lovejoy would run until he was sore, then stop and try again until he couldn’t move.
“I had no idea what I was doing, but Davis taught me how to listen to my body. If your body says to rest, then rest. You need to build up gradually and set realistic goals
“He also explained no one is watching you work, and getting into the gym or public space isn’t scary.
“To show my progress, he would show me 5kg, 10kg, 15kg, 20kg plates and say that’s how much you’ve lost as we went on.
“My big surge was to look good and feel good in my own body, but as the weight started to drop and I hit around 85kg I still wasn’t satisfied, so I kept pushing and dropping more and more.”
And it was through Ataera that Lovejoy was introduced to boxing in 2021. He found it to be a disciplined sport that required commitment, focus, and hard work – and was very much about the fighter’s personal journey.
After 18 months of meticulous preparation under Lisa Samuels, his original coach, he was ready for his first competitive bout on June 18, 2022, but lost against the younger but more experienced Hemi Rore-Keefe from Wairoa.
“It was a good fight. I stayed on my feet, kept pushing forward, and threw some punches.
“Just getting in the ring was a victory in itself, considering the journey I’d been on. I had envisioned that moment so many times.”
In August 2022, Lovejoy lost his second fight by split decision against a taller opponent, Ethan McFarlane from Gisborne.
“It was a back-and-forth battle that turned into a bit of a slug-fest. I used my head to block some shots, which wasn’t ideal.”
In 2025, Lovejoy began training at the Hastings Giants Boxing Academy under the mentorship of former New Zealand lightweight champion Craig McDougall.
By then Lovejoy had developed enough to compete at Golden Gloves Novice level in tournaments serving as a key pathway for boxers aiming to compete nationally and potentially represent New Zealand internationally.
However, he lost a split decision to Tama Marshall in Auckland in May.
“I was pleased with how I boxed, but gutted not to win. Tama was sharp and made some of his sparring partners look average.
“He had more experience than I did but I stuck to the game plan and managed to land some good counter shots.”
Beyond boxing, Lovejoy is halfway through a Bachelor of Teaching degree, intending to become a primary school teacher.
But after his win over Montenegro, he may also have a fighting chance of building his career in the ring.