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Although he’s had an incredible 2009 reigning European Middleweight champ Matthew Macklin is hoping that 2010 will be even better. The Birmingham based Irishman has enjoyed a tremendous year requiring less than 10 minutes in the boxing ring to capture the British and European Middleweight titles.
Macklin will look to round out the year in style this Saturday when he takes on Uruguayan champion, Rafa Sosa Pintos in the main event of the Sierra Fight Night at the National Stadium, Dublin.
However had things turned out differently Macklin could have been fighting his battles in the courtroom rather than in the boxing ring. As an 18 year old and having acquired nine GCSEs and A levels in English, History and German Macklin began a law degree at Coventry University. However after completing his first year in University Macklin was forced to abandon his studies in order to focus solely on the boxing ring.
The prodigiously talented amateur became one of the youngest ever winners of an ABA title aged just 18 and but he knew that his inevitable transfer to the paid code would mean having to become a full time professional boxer.
“I just couldn’t keep both going,” said Macklin. “The old saying is true, you can play football or rugby but you can’t play boxing. You have to give it everything and my studies were starting to suffer because of that. I couldn’t keep them both going to the level I needed.
“I was up in the morning at 6 to go for a run and then catch the train to uni for the day. Then when I got back in the afternoon I’d fit in another training session before heading to the boxing gym in the evening and then it was back home to try and get a bit of study done before calling it a night.
“It came to a point where I knew I had to choose between boxing and my education so I had a chat with the university and they told me that I could defer the rest of the degree and come back to it whenever I wanted.
“It was a tough decision to make because my parents had spent a small fortune on my education but they’ve always known how much I love my boxing and they’ve been very supportive throughout my entire career.”
Macklin hasn’t been back to University since but 2009 has certainly been a “graduation year” as far as his boxing career is concerned. A third round destruction of then British Champion Wayne Elcock in March was impressive considering that Elcock had lasted in to the fifth with destructive puncher Arthur Abraham in an IBF World title fight just two fights earlier.
However even that performance pales in comparison to Macklin’s first round demolition of Finland’s Amin Asikainen in September to lift the European title. Macklin needed just over 2 and a half minutes to cement his position as Europe’s premier Middleweight and lift the championship belt that has previously adorned the waists of such boxing luminaries as Sumbu Kalambay, Alan Minter, Nino Benvenuti, Laszlo Papp, Randy Turpin, Marcel Cerdan and Ted “Kid” Lewis.
The back to back title wins have clearly made people sit up and take notice with Macklin now rated at number 6 in the world by the U.S. based Ring magazine while BoxRec.com’s independent computer ratings also list Macklin as the World’s sixth best middleweight.
Those independent ratings are supported by the major sanctioning bodies with Macklin listed in the top tens of the WBO (4), IBF (5) and the WBC (8). All of which means that Macklin is so close to a World title fight that he can almost taste it.
His fight with Asikainen was the first engagement of a three fight promotional deal with friend, one time sparring partner and now promoter, Ricky Hatton. Saturday’s clash with Pintos is next on the agenda and all going well Macklin’s next contest will be a mandatory defence of his European title against the unbeaten Russian Dmitry Pirog. Once that’s out of the way “The Hitman” has promised to deliver his charge a World title opportunity.
“Matthew’s performance against Asikainen proves that he’s up there with the best in the world – he was superb and thoroughly professional,” said Hatton, who will be ringside in Dublin this weekend.
“Asikainen, remember, was rated as high as sixth in the world and this wasn’t a lucky one-punch win. It was the result of years of hard work and dedication. When he came to join me as his promoter I promised that I would do all I could to get him to the top. I have sparred with him often enough to know that he has the ability to go all the way
“Now I have to keep my word and I will. We need to work very carefully on Matthew’s fight’s next year and a challenge against newly crowned IBF champion Sebastian Sylvester – over whom Asikainen holds a win – is one possibility,” he said.
As for Macklin he feel’s he’s ready for the World best right now. “People have been saying that Dmitry Pirog’s a dangerous fighter. I’ve watched him and there’s no doubt he’s very good but I’m not a bit bothered about fighting him or anyone else, for that matter.
“I’d take on any of the champions right now including Kelly Pavlik. I don’t think there are too many big fights out there for Pavlik at the moment so if that fight came my way I’d jump at it. I believe I’ve the skills, the power and the chin to beat him.”
There has also been plenty of talk about an all Irish battle between Macklin and Limerick southpaw Andy Lee and the former Tipperary underage hurler is refusing to rule out a mouth watering Limerick – Tipperary clash. “Ideally I want to get past Pirog and then fight for a World title but if that doesn’t come off then I think a voluntary defence of my European title against Andy would make a lot of sense,” said Macklin.
“It would be an easy fight to make, I’m managed by Brian Peters and Brian’s promoted all Andy’s fights in Ireland so it’s a natural fight. There’s no bad blood between us or anything, it would be strictly business. Andy’s a nice lad, in fact I watched the Pacquiao and Cotto fight with him after his last fight in Limerick and we had a good laugh about fighting each other.
“He’s told me personally that he’s up for the fight so it’s definitely another option for next year although a World title fight is what I’m really pushing for right now.”
Macklin’s clash with Pintos headlines the Sierra Fight Night at the National Stadium, Dublin on Saturday. The undercard features two Irish title fights with Dublin Dublin’s Paul Hyland making the first defence of his Irish Super Bantamweight title against Eugene Heagney while another popular Dubliner, Anthony Fitzgerald will also feature in Irish title action.
Unbeaten Cavan Lightweight Andy Murray also makes his return to the ring on Saturday night having suffered a broken collarbone in September. Cork based Cuban sensation Luis Garcia will look to extend his perfect record on the undercard alongside unbeaten Dundalk Lightweight Michael Kelly and Omagh’s Damian Taggart.
Tickets for the Sierra Fight Night priced from €40 are available from Ticketmaster (phone 0818 719 300 or visit ticketmaster.ie) and all usual outlets.
