Deon Potgieter Boxing
There’s no stopping former three-time world cham- pion Thulani “Sugarboy” Malinga.
After “breaking” his hand on Saturday in a world unification bout in Denmark, Malinga, the World Boxing Federation’s (WBF)super middle-weight world champion, was forced to withdraw in the 10th round of the fight and relinquished his title to his opponent.
Matt Lawson, the International Boxing Organisation super middleweight world champion, walked away with the Malinga’s WBF belt.
Worse still, at this stage of the fight, Malinga was trailing slightly on points, but had been gradually taking control, having won rounds six to eight.
“Everything was going according to plan,” says Malinga.
“We decided before that we would let him [Larson] punch himself out in the first few rounds and then I would nail him in the late rounds. He was going. If it wasn’t for my hand I would have put him down.”
Denmark fight fans saw it the same way. It was largely due to public demand that Danish promoter Mogans Palle has offered the affable Malinga a rematch. The crowd felt had Malinga not “broken” his hand he might have won.
“The Larson/Malinga fight was a sell-out,” says Palle. “Malinga enjoys immense popularity, so I’d like him to fight here again.”
The boxers had been trading heavy blows in the ninth round, when Malinga caught Larson on the top of the head. The blow shook Larson, but also twisted and sprained Malinga’s right wrist. At first it was feared that he had broken his hand, but fortunately this was not the case.
“I was frustrated,” says Malinga. “Even when the man was standing right next to me I couldn’t hit him, because I couldn’t use my right hand.”
This is the fourth time Malinga has suffered from hand problems, and like former heavyweight world champion Gerrie Coetzee, he has had metal pins inserted to repair a break.
Before the rematch with Larson, which is scheduled to take place in September, Malinga will first have a warm-up fight with Frankie Alvarez in May, also in Denmark. Malinga stopped Alvarez in 11 rounds in June last year to win the WBF world title. “This time I’ll stop him sooner,” says Malinga.
Alvarez is half the 42-year-old Malinga’s age. In fact he’s the same age as Malinga’s second son. In their first encounter there were fears that the strong Swede may hurt the ageing Malinga. Instead, it was the other way around. So much so that the referee wanted to stop the fight in the eighth round, but let it continue after Alvarez’s father, who is also his trainer, pleaded for him to let his son fight on.
There may be an added bonus to the Alvarez fight. Mike Segal, who promotes Malinga said, “Larson may be relinquishing the WBF title. If this happens, Malinga and Alvarez will again be fighting for the vacant WBF title.”
But there have been many calls for Malinga to retire. “He should have retired after he lost his World Boxing Council title,” says Terry Pettifer, Golden Gloves publicist. “They’re not thinking of his health.”
Malinga did in fact face fierce opposition when accepting to fight Alvarez last year for the WBF title. The South African Boxing Control Commission refused to renew his licence, citing medical reasons. They were however not willing to specify what exactly the medical reasons were.
Not to be outdone by allowing other people to stand in his way, Malinga accepted Danish citizenship and now fights with a Danish boxing licence. “It’s sad,” says Malinga. “I’m a South African, but I have to fight under another country’s flag.”
“I’m very popular in Denmark,” Malinga adds. “I don’t know what’s wrong with South Africans. They’re very negative. We’ve got a lot of great fighters in the country, but the people don’t want to acknowledge them. We have to go to other countries to be recognised.”
So popular is Malinga in Denmark that they have offered him a coaching position when he retires from the ring.
“No fighter in the next decade will ever equal Malinga’s achievement,” says Mike Segal. “At the age of 42, he’s still highly rated internationally and is among the world titles.
“He holds a special place in South African boxing history and has been very special for the sport.”
Malinga, who had his first world title fight in 1989, has indeed carved a unique niche for himself in our boxing history.
His philosophy is simple, yet effective. “If you want to achieve something in life, never give up. Keep going and keep believing in your dream.”
And Malinga’s dream? “I want to fight Roy Jones. Everybody says he’s the best, but I know I can beat him!”