TEENAGE Muay Thai professional Leonie Hardman has an ambitious plan to give her career a leg up - by learning from the world’s best in Thailand.

The 18-year-old former Carmel College student, who turned pro immediately after winning the World Junior Title in St Petersberg two years ago, wants to head east in December for a three-week spell.

Once there she hopes her skill and tenacity can impress one of the gyms sufficiently to earn a sponsorship agreement and spend the early part of the New Year in Thailand.

And this would aid her in her mission to become the UK’s number one in the 52.5kg category by next May and bring her closer to her ultimate goal of being world champion.

The Grange Park girl has not had it easy since turning professional winning six of her nine fights, with a steep learning curve taking her to face opponents much older and more experienced than she is.

But she has a determination to succeed – epitomised by her gruelling three-hour, three-train journey to get to Super Gym in Knutsford to simply train.

Despite recently passing three A levels, Hardman is putting university on hold for a year in order to concentrate on this part of her sporting career – and she is using the Talent Backer scheme in order to try and get her passage to Thailand – and a springboard to the future.

Hardman said: “Getting to Thailand will help me make a dream come true but it will improve my skills and create bigger and better opportunities for me.

“They are the best in the sport over there and effectively do six hours training a day.”

She has 11 days to reach her target – or she gets none of the money pledged so far so friends, family and former classmates are drumming up support to take her to another level.

“The plan is to train hard here with my coaches before I left in December – then have two weeks training over in Thailand followed by a fight,” she said.

“Then hopefully that would put me in a position to get sponsorship over there and be one of their fighters for a couple of months.

“It is a tough sport – I am the youngest in my rankings and I was only 16 when I turned professional. My first fight was against a 26-year-old woman and I have not fought anyone my own age yet.”

Hardman trains at SuperGym in Knutsford under the guidance of Ric Barnhill – and is going well, and last year won the WRSA Professional Celtic title beating the Irish number one to take the crown.

However, she is just coming back from a bad injury after rupturing her quadriceps in her last fight in May, but she has a steely focus for autumn which would gather momentum if she gets the public’s financial backing.

Visit talentbacker.com/talents/view/leonie-hardman to sponsor her.