Despite their attempts After gaining fame and fortune on television, the brothers really excelled in the kickboxing gym. They attended Storm Gym in Luton, a well-equipped premises in an old warehouse on a commercial estate, under the tutelage of Amir Subasic, a former military kickboxer who became close to them and their family.
Gym staff declined to comment about Andrew and Tristan, and the gym's website was recently taken down. updateddeletion descriptions Andrew as “one of the most destructive fighters” and Tristan as a “war machine”.
Johal, a gym owner from Leicestershire, believed Andrew was an accomplished kickboxer and admired the way he fought with his hands down, a high-risk strategy that allows fighters to swing and dodge quickly but exposes them to the danger of a knockout blow.
Johal suspected that Andrew had learned his talent for self-promotion during his years as a fighter. “Andrew has always been a little controversial. Sometimes you have to be the bad cop,” Johal said, explaining that the big money and fights go to the biggest pugilists.
“Andrew learned that a long time ago. He was always saying things to get people to like him, to get noticed. He's not like that at all as a person,” Johal said. He added that Andrew went on online kickboxing forums and wrote controversial things to draw attention to his fights.
Ibrahim El Bustati, the Dutch kickboxer who defeated Andrew to win his championship belt in 2016, said Mirror that the alpha male image is just a game. “He’s lying to a lot of people, he’s not the person he says he is,” he told the tabloid. “I know him, Andrew and his brother Tristan very well. I spoke to them all week leading up to the fight, doing interviews, and he is a very kind person.”
Andrew also took an over-the-top approach to promoting his fights in the fight press. tell One of the interviewers for the martial arts magazine Love 2 Fight in 2013 said that he came from a mystical country called Wudan and trained with a man named Master Po. The story would later be included in Tate's misogynistic teaching materials, illustrated with elaborate manga-style cartoons, and adopted by his followers.
“His fights sold themselves,” Johal said. “He literally called himself 'Cobra.' Because like a cobra, his right hand straight from behind would knock out most people.”
Both brothers achieved success in the ring. Andrew has won several world title fights and Tristan has won two British titles. Although this deal was not profitable, it brought in some money. Andrew finally got his hands on an Aston Martin DB9 sports car after earning £10,000 in the fray.
“It was quite strange because it was a one-bedroom apartment and there was an Aston Martin DB outside,” O’Halloran recalled. This led to Andrew's infamous nickname “Top G”. “When we were younger we always said, 'What a top G,'” O'Halloran recalls. “This guy is the main gangster here – he drives an Aston Martin.”
