In his third fight since returning to competitive kickboxing, local gym owner Dave Nielsen won the first title of his career. Nielsen won the IKF California Cruiserweight Kickboxing title fight at the Battle at the Comicon at 4th and B downtown on July 25. “It was good. I was able to find some holes early on and I took advantage of it,” Nielsen said. “I landed more than he did, and I was able to hurt him before he was able to hurt me and I took away the win.” Nielsen said he attacked opponent Derek Galanis from the outset. The owner of American Boxing in Pacific Beach won by TKO at 1:10 in the first round. “I attacked with a combination of straights and hooks, I caught him, knocked him down, came back out, started working my setups again and then I caught him again with a glancing hook,” Nielsen said. “I didn’t really catch him really square with it, but I just caught his chin just right and he fell almost across the whole ring.” Nielsen said his first title fight was not his last. “This is one of a number of titles I plan on fighting for,” he said. “I plan on continuing up that ladder until I reach my goals. This was an important first step and this was something I should have had a long time ago.” Nielsen will get back in the ring on Aug. 22 in a fight for the World Kickboxing Association United States Muay Thai title. The fight is part of Combat Sports Challenge 29 in Richmond, Va. “I didn’t think I was going to fight so soon, so I immediately went and bought the largest container of mint chocolate ice cream I could find and began inhaling,” Nielsen said. “For about a week, I was eating everything I could find – I still eat pretty healthy but I add ice cream to the diet.” Despite having two fights less than a month apart, Nielsen said his body has recovered since the Battle at the Comicon and that he feels ready for his next fight. “It’s kind of hard to train so hard, fight and then start training so hard again right away – it’s a little bit daunting, Nielsen said. “But I feel faster and stronger than I did at this point before my fight here in San Diego.”