Gavin Evans : Boxing
Boxing’s geriatric decade may be ready for a new twist when Thulane “Sugarboy” Malinga fights Britain’s Robin Reid for the WBC supoer middleweight title on Friday night.
Throughout his career Sugarboy has been such an erratic boxer that you never know who is going to turn up – the brilliant dazzler, the awkward spoiler or the powder- puff plodder, and these days he’s even less predictable.
But if he’s up for it, as he seems to be, he has a fair shot at becoming what may be the oldest non-heavyweight ever to lift a serious version of a “world” title.
Officially, Malinga turned 38 on December 11; actually, according to everyone close to him, he’s 42, though when I asked him about the subject this week he said with a wry smile, “Don’t believe everything you read.”
If, as seems likely, the latter version is correct, it would make him several years older than Archie Moore, who won the world light heavyweight title at 39.
Which is not to say Malinga is too old for the top, despite having been in the game as an amateur and a professional for over a quarter of a century. Diet, training methods, lifestyles, less demanding fight schedules and more generous purses have all contributed to prolonging the careers of some of the game’s premier attractions.
George Foreman is once again unretired, shortly before his 49th birthday, while Larry Holmes is still busy at 48 and Roberto Duran at 46. And below them are scores of other champions and contenders in their mid-to-late thirties.
Among the best is the brilliant 38-year-old Sheffield super middleweight Herol Graham, who last week won a unanimous decision over three-times “world” champion Vinnie Pazienza to secure a place behind Reid and Malinga in the WBC pecking order.
Graham said he is convinced Malinga has the beating of the Enlishman. “It’s true that Malinga is erratic, but he can be a very good boxer. Reid has a decent jab, he’s strong, he hits quite hard and has a particularly good right, but Sugarboy has more to him – he’s more versatile.
“The way to beat Reid is to keep moving and countering and don’t give him breathing space. Tick-tack away and make him miss, and I think Malinga can do just that.”
Having watched most of the fights of this handsome 26-year-old champion, I have never been wildly impressed. He won the title by being in the right place at the right time – more specifically he was put in with a weak champion (Vincenzo Nardiello) by a powerful promoter (Frank Warren). His record shows 25 wins (17 inside the distance) and a draw, but he has never been tested against someone as awkward, experienced and hard-to-hit as Malinga.
He looks impressive against come-forward brawlers but tends to flounder against more mobile and versatile boxers, of which Malinga is one of the best.
Counting against the equally handsome South African is the fact that he’s been out of action for the 17 months since he was controversially outpointed by Nardiello – a consequence of the sport’s promotional politics which forced him to wait in line despite remaining the mandatory contender.
But Malinga says this is not a factor. “I don’t think the inactivity will have an impact because I’ve been training and sparring regularly. I have never stopped, and the thing with the age is that it’s mainly a matter of the mind. If you think you are old, you will be, but me, I’m still young – I’ve still got a long way to go.”
His manager-trainer Nick Durandt adds to this assessment: “He always lives cleanly and it’s not like he’s a shot fighter who has taken any real beatings n his career. The way I see it is that the first four rounds are crucial because that’s where the pattern will be set.
“We’ve never planned with such fine technical detail before but whatever Reid tries, Sugarboy has the answer – he can counterpunch or he can chase and I honestly think he is sharper and in better shape than against (Nigel) Benn.” Malinga beat Benn for the WBC title nearly three years ago.
Malinga himself seems to have recaptured the kind of supreme confidence of his finest perfromances, and watching him sparring with Oupa Ntshingila and Ruben Groenewald at the Peacock gym in London’s East End, this faith certainly seemed to have some basis to it.
He looked sharp and focused, showing exquisite timing and his cardio-vascular conditioning was extremely impressive. He moved quickly around the ring, seldom taking a solid punch and was throwing fast, solid combinations.
“It’s not a question of if I win. I will win and then I want a unification or to fight another big name and then I’ll have another four fights, and only after that will I quit. I’ve studied Reid carefully. He’s a good boxer because he’s strong and young, but whatever he tries, I’m ready for it.
“I’m here to collect what belongs to me. Against Nardiello I think I overtrained with the result that my body didn’t allow me to do what I wanted to, but this time I’m better tuned. Reid will discover that Malinga is a man who knows his job.
“Reid has a good chin, so I’m not saying I’ll knock him out, but if I drop him, it will be from a punch he doesn’t see coming.”
ENDS