DJ Taumoepeau didn't care where he was sleeping.
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After two training sessions per day with a shift cracking concrete in the back of a truck wedged in between, the boot of his car might as well have been a five-star hotel.
For six months he was sleeping in his car under the confines of a mixed martial arts gym, until he was woken up by a tap on the window from the coaches to signal the start of another day.
That was his life - during the week at least, because Taumoepeau would race home on the weekend to be with his wife and two kids.
It was the former that signed Taumoepeau up for the Wimp2Warrior program, taking novices through an intense training camp through to a fight.
It was an experiment designed to test himself, but Taumoepeau is not done by any means. He is now bracing for the biggest fight of his career in an XFC heavyweight championship bout against Justin Tafa at Brisbane's Mansfield Tavern on Friday.
"I used to fantasise about fighting, but it was my wife [Casey] that signed me up for Wimp2Warrior," Taumoepeau said.
"She was like 'dude, you're going to Sydney for six months'. She kicked me out the door, and I was up there working, sleeping downstairs under the gym in the car and going to double sessions.
"I would keep working whatever labour jobs I got up there, just to keep the financials going down here. I did that for six months and just kept going after that.
"The jobs I was doing there, we were cracking concrete in the back of concrete trucks, so I was pretty tired at the end of a shift. I didn't care where I was sleeping.
"I usually got some of the guys at the gym to just check the car in case I hadn't woken up yet [before training started]."
Taumoepeau has since linked up with Duke Didier, Ben Edwards and boxing coach Joe Hedger as he begins making waves in Australian MMA's heavyweight division.
With four wins from his first five bouts, he has no plans to slow down.
"[Winning the XFC title] would be a step in the right direction for me. I want to follow the way Ben is going," Taumoepeau said.
"I want to try PFL [Professional Fighters League] next year of the year after, and then hopefully after that, UFC. This definitely would be a step in the right direction for me, that's the plan anyway.
"I had to turn down two fights for this one, just for this title fight. I feel ready. I don't want to go the five five-minute rounds. I'm prepared for it, but I don't plan on it."
XFC 41 - A NEW ERA
Friday: Justin Tafa v DJ Taumoepeau for the XFC heavyweight championship at Mansfield Tavern, Brisbane. First fight at 7pm. Live stream on XFC Australia.