OMARI “Lion Boy” Kimweri took a bite out of Australian Flyweight boxing last month, winning his first national title in blistering fashion.

If Kimweri were to be compared with “The Lion King” - the movie that put his home country Tanzania in the spotlight - he would be Simba, ready to be crowned king of the boxing world.

The 27-year-old from Deer Park conquered his most recent challenger Matt Meredith to become Australian flyweight champion at Cranbourne Racecourse last Saturday night in just 51 seconds.

Last Wednesday, he returned to Tarneit Boxing Gym to rapturous cheers and handshakes from his gym mates, who were proud to have an Australian champion in their midst.

And no one was prouder than Kimweri himself.

“I feel all right, I feel I’m a better boxer in Australia now,” he said.

Kimweri came to Australia in 2006 representing Tanzania in the Commonwealth Games in boxing, and has not looked back since.

“I came here, I lost my fight (at the Games), and then I decided to stay in Australia, and I turned professional in 2007 in Adelaide. My first fight was in Adelaide.”

Kimweri picked up professional boxing in his home country because it gave him the opportunity for a career.

“When I was 20 years old, I started real boxing, because if you are good boxer, you can work for government. Police have team, army has team, and I was a prison officer.

“I boxed for them for about two years, and then national team calls me and said ‘come to Australia for the Commonwealth Games’.”

Having achieved national champion status in his new homeland, Kimweri’s sights are now on world fame.

“I want a world title, I need another six fights. I want to come down, when I finish this sixth fight, I want to come down to minimum weight, 47 kilos, and I can make that because I used to fight lower than that.

“I want to be world champ for flyweight, light flyweight, and minimum weight.”

It has not all been smooth sailing for Kimweri, coming across from Adelaide to Melbourne to be closer to his partner after leaving his former trainer.

“My girlfriend was living here (Melbourne), and I was living there (Adelaide), so I would come here to see her. I went to another trainer’s house, went with him, stayed at his house, but he did not treat me good, didn’t allow me to have friends.

“I said, ‘I don’t like this life, I want to be free’. I went away from him, went to live with my girlfriend, and we got married.”

After considering giving the sport away Kimweri eventually made his way to Tarneit Boxing Gym where the boxing world has seen his true colours.

Kimweri said he would never go back to his home country, as it would be too dangerous for him to enter.

“I don’t want to go back. It’s dangerous for me to go back. I used to work in the government and I decided to stay in Australia, so the government are not happy.

“I told Australian government I plan to stay here, and they said, ‘You don’t have to go back’. Now I’m married, and I can stay here.”

When he’s not in the ring, Kimweri works for a cleaning company where he said his colleagues were friendly and liked boxing – an ideal environment for him.

Kimweri summed up his biggest career victory by saying that the flyweight title, and subsequent media attention, would show the Australian government what his purpose was in the country.

“I can tell migration I’m not here for one day, I’m here for this,” he said.