Boxing

Birmingham-Irish boxer’s long wait for world title shot is over

by Larry Cooney

Matthew Macklin: “This is the fight that I’ve dreamed about since

I first put on a pair of gloves”

JUST A FEW MONTHS short of the tenth anniversary of his professional fight in Glasgow, Birmingham-born Matthew Macklin gets a dream shot at a world title on June 25th. It’s not been the best of times for Irish boxers in their recent attempts at world titles but Macklin intends to end an April month of misery for Irish fighters by relieving champion Felix Sturm of his WBA World Middleweight crown.

The 20,000 seater Lanxess Arena in Cologne is the venue where Matthew Macklin fans, drawn from not just his home-town but also Tipperary and Roscommon and indeed throughout Ireland and the UK, will be heading at the end of June hoping to see him realise his boyhood dream of becoming a world champion.

Macklin has indeed watched Paul McCloskey, Willie ‘Big Bang’ Casey and Brian Magee all falter in their recent World title bids but the two time European Champion is understandably confident that he can go one better and become Ireland’s first World title holder since Bernard Dunne’s sensational victory over Cordoba in March 2009.

But the Birmingham-born Irishman is also under no illusions about the task ahead given Sturm's status as a sporting icon in Germany having reigned for almost a decade at the top of the Middleweight division.

“I have a lot of respect for Felix,” revealed the 28-year-old Macklin. “For a lot of people it was was probably his World title defence against Oscar De La Hoya that would have brought him to prominence but I've followed his career closely ever since I saw him win Gold in Birmingham at the European Junior Championships in 1997. He was only 18 at the time but you could see he was going to go on to big things. As a pro he has been a great World champion. He's been in 15 World title fights and he's been a dominant force at middleweight for almost the last 10 years.

“It's a huge challenge given his quality and the fact that it's exceptionally difficult to win in Germany but it's the kind of challenge that gets my juices flowing and I believe it's my time now. I have earned the right to be there, I've won the Irish and British titles, won the European title twice and I'm highly rated with all the sanctioning bodies (WBA 2, WBC 4, WBO 7 and IBF 8) and I'm number 5 with the Ring magazine so I'm there on merit. This is what I've dreamed about since I first put on a pair of boxing gloves and I'm determined to make the most of the opportunity.

“My best performances have always come in fights where my back has been against the wall. A lot of people were tipping Wayne Elcock to beat me when we fought for the British title but I blew him away and I did the same to Asikainen for the European title when again a lot of people were writing off my chances. It will be the same this time but I have always believed I belong at the highest level and this is my chance to prove that.

Macklin is also hoping that he will have plenty of support in the cavernous Lanxess Arena to cheer him all the way to the World title. “The atmosphere at German fights can be fairly tame,” said Macklin. “The audiences there usually give a polite round of applause at the end of the round and during the rounds you can hear a pin drop. I'm sure it will be very different for this fight though because there will be a big contingent travelling over to Germany and they will be making a lot of noise and I intend to give them plenty to shout about.”

Macklin has even promised to brush up on his German ahead of the fight so that he can do his talking in and out of the ring. “I actually studied German at school for 6 years so I still have enough to get by. I was due to go there on a couple of exchange trips as a student but ironically I always had to pull out of them because they conflicted with boxing commitments I had in the amateurs.

“I fought against Germans twice as an amateur and won both times, one of those was a win over Eduard Gutknecht who fights for the European Light Heavyweight title next month so I'm confident that I can keep that run going in the professionals and bring back the World title.”

Macklin's manager, Brian Peters is equally confident that Ireland will have another World Champion to savour over the summer.

“Felix Sturm is one of the longest reigning World Champions in boxing currently but I believe the timing is perfect now for Matthew to end that reign,” said Peters.

“Sturm will bring out the best in Matthew and I'm confident that it will be another huge night for Irish boxing. There's already been huge interest from fight fans looking to travel to Germany to the fight and I think that support will prove vital to Matthew pulling off a famous victory.”

It promises to be another momentous moment in a professional career that has not always gone smoothly for Matthew Macklin but he has never shirked a real challenge and this is the kind of challenge that will bring the best out of him.

Personally I hope he can find that big punch because in a close points contest fairness among the scoring system is unreliable so it make take a Matthew Macklin knock-out special to deliver the Holy Grail – the WBA World Middleweight title belt which I understand he hopes to parade before the attendance at this year’s Munster Hurling Final on Sunday July 10^th! Wouldn’t that be some occasion for all Irish sports fans?

The toast of Irish America
...but Sean Mannion returned to Ros Muc penniliess

by Phil Campion

HE CAME from humble backgrounds in the west of Ireland and became the toast of Irish American’s. Sean Mannion should have returned to these shores a wealthy man - instead he returned to Galway nine years ago penniless and with a drink problem.
His rise to fame is as interesting as the fictional Rocky character but without the financial rewards.
Eleven thousand Irish boxing fans flew to New York in 1984 to watch the Ros Muc man fight tyrant Mike McCallum who was to become champion at three different weights.
Every Irish American wanted a ticket for the 15-round fight that went the distance at Madison Square Gardens and Sean should have made his fortune instead of earning nickels and dimes.
Mannion had previously beaten the World’s number one contender, big names avoided him and World Title fights for the super middleweight were promised but never materialised.
“Did my manager know any better,” questions Mannion.
“I earned just just $3,000 for beating the number one contender and my share of the purse for the McCallum fight was just $20,000, whilst fighters I would have beaten like Mustafa Hamsho earned $500,000 in his defeat to Marvelous Marvin Hagler.”
Apart from a few weeks surrounding the McCallum fight Mannion toiled on the building sites of Massachusetts - throughout his 16-years of boxing in the United States the Galwayman earned a living in construction or labouring.
Sean had his share of bad luck but the amount of fights the tough southpaw fought against quality opposition he should have been made for life.
The legendary Angelo Dundee would phone Sean’s manager Jimmy Connolly with big pay days in Europe but Connolly would hang the phone up. A number of times Sean was forced to fight with just a weeks notice and fought with injuries. On one occasion he had lost 6lbs in 90 minutes so he could fight.
Sean became number one contender for six months and still his manager failed to find him big money fights.
The Ros Muc man would enter the ring with whoever and whenever his manager told him and lost out to fights with legends Roberto Duran who feared Sean had the style to beat him and Sugar Ray Leonard whose brother could not make a deal for the two to meet. Just one of those fights would have earned the southpaw from Ross Muc enough to live well on for the rest of his life.
Mannion needed to move out of Ireland for a boxing career. He didn’t know anyone in England and headed for Boston.
“I went to the U.S. first in 1974 as a 17-year-old worked out there stayed until Christmas and returned when an uncle died.

“I came back worked in a factory in Rath Cairn, Co Meath and returned to the States in 1977.
“My brothers and sisters were there. There were twelve of us in the family and at one time or another we were all in America.”
Sean used Connolly’s gym in Boston and the legendary Marvellous Marvin Hagler asked him to spar with him.
Boston at that time had a very strong Irish run mafia and Sean was repeatedly asked to work for them. He resisted the temptation.
“All the guys in the Gym were connected with the Irish mob,” said Mannion. “One of the top men was from Ros Muc and he told me to stay away from it.
“These were nice lads but one of the guys who trained with us got caught dealing drugs and was sentenced for 11 years.
“They were all gangsters working for Whitey Bulger.”
The Galwayman got into a few scrapes whilst in Boston.
“An American hit an old man in a bar when he complained of the language used in front of his daughter. I hit the American and cops arrested me.
“They gave me a good beating in the street and took me back to the station.
“They called me an Irish pig even though they were Irish American. They kept beating me at the station until eventually a black cop intervened.”
Sean was also troubled by a court case that could have ended up with him being jailed or deported.
“I was also involved in an incident when a guy pulled a knife on me and I hit him in self-defence.
“I didn’t know until later that he ended up with 49 stitches and I was being taken to court. It went on for six months and just before the trial the man’s brother persuaded him to drop charges.”
Mannion has worked hard and not received the credit or financial reward for his toil but he said he would ‘do it all again’.
Speaking to Sean you can tell that money was not his first love. When he came to fight Mike McCallum he rejected one sponsorship deal so he could show the world he was proud of his birthplace in Connemara .
“A sports gear company came in with first bid of $5,000 for sponsorship on my shorts for the Mike McCallum fight,” he explained.
“I told them they would be wasting their time increasing bids - I wanted Ross Muc on my shorts.”
Things looked up towards the end of Sean’s career when Muhammad Ali’s former cornerman Angelo Dundee managed him.
Mannion swears his record should have been better and has been let down by taking fights at short notice or without sparring practice.
As Sean’s boxing career dwindled he sought refuge in drink.
“After the McCallum fight I was depressed and drunk a lot,” he explained.
“I haven’t drunk for 6 years now though. I retired from boxing in 1993 at 36 and returned to Ireland in 2000. I loved America - I had great support and was treated like a hero everywhere I went, but my heart was always in Ireland.
“I’ve worked in construction for seven years in Galway and I’m now looking for more work.
“I never made money in boxing and I earned more in construction.”
Sean’s boxing know how has not been lost - he’s now on hand to help the west of Ireland’s up and coming talent.
Light heavyweight hope from Co Mayo Mike Sweeney who signed a lucrative five-year contract with an American promoter has turned to Sean for help.