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Australia could be the new hotbed of boxing as Lucas Browne recently became the first-ever heavyweight champion from Down Under when he knocked out Ruslan Chagaev in Russia and now we have a 59-year-old world record holder. A businessman from Sydney named Rod Walker recently boxed 127 consecutive rounds to set a new mark for the longest boxing match ever. Walker boxed for 8.5 hours and broke the old record of 123 rounds which was set by an Irish boxer named Gerry Cronelly in 2012.

A few days after the record-setting performance, Walker told the press, “I felt like a truck had hit me the next morning. Every sinew in my body, from the tops of fingers to my toes, was sore. It was by far the toughest thing I’ve ever done.”

An official from the Guinness Book of World Records was on hand during the event to make sure that each and every round lasted a full three minutes and it was full contact boxing. Walker fought several different opponents over the 127 rounds including former professional boxing champions Sakio Bika and Nigel Benn. Walker admitted that he thought about retiring on his stool after about 80 rounds when he realized he still had close to 50 rounds left and he believed he had a torn hamstring.

He carried on though and said the earlier rounds were pretty easy since there was a lot of excitement and adrenaline running through his body, but when it wore off he found it was hard to focus since it was so exhausting mentally as well as physically. Walker didn’t put his body through the rigorous ordeal just for the sake of getting his name in the record book though as the event raised close to $200,000 for a family-oriented charity named Fusion Western Sydney. Money was also raised at the event through a silent auction and a raffle while the admission was free.

Walker didn’t start boxing until he was 52 years old and he learned the ropes pretty quickly as he entered the 2013 Australian Masters Games and walked away with a gold medal. He said he trained hard for six months leading up to his 8.5-hour marathon which saw the first bell ring at 9am. He trained approximately 25 hours a week and in total, faced 22 opponents while setting the record. He admitted that there was a possibility that he wouldn’t set a new mark since there was always a chance he could have been knocked out.