Some of us can probably remember watching on flickering black and white television Tony Mundine, father of the flashy Anthony Mundine, fighting Carlos Monzon for the World Middleweight title way back in 1974.
The tallish, wiry Monzon, who could absorb punishment like a giant sponge absorbing blood, has been ranked as one of the great middleweights of all time.
Tony Mundine, a chunky, hard-hitting and skillful fighter, was in the same class, except for the physical weakness of a glass jaw. In the seventh round of their title fight, Monzon finally cracked Mundine on the jaw and the fight was over.
Thirty-four years later Tony Mundine’s son, Anthony, is making claims for himself as the “read deal” and “the greatest” that would put him in the same category of greatness as Carlos Monzon. On the evidence of his career so far, and his latest fight against Sam Soliman at Melbourne’s Vodaphone Arena, Anthony Mundine has the talk but he doesn’t have the fight.
He fights with his hands low, in the lazy manner of Muhummed Ali. He talks to his opponents, again like Ali. He has a flashy array of punches and good hand speed, but not much of a punch. But unlike Ali, he gets smacked a lot by fighters like Soliman who would rate as ordinary club fighters in the USA.
He does have a terrific jaw, though, unlike his father. There were some slow-motion shots of head punches landed by Soliman that showed the face-cheeks exploding and then deflating like punctured balloons with the force of the blow.
One shudders what to think what Carlos Monzon or Tony Mundine would have done to the gutsy Sam Soliman. Certainly the journeyman battler would not have gone the distance with these two greats, who did well enough – in his own mind – to claim the victory.
Anthony Mundine’s real talent as a fighter has been to create such an unattractive public persona, based on what the Sydney Morning Herald’s excellent sports writer Richard Hinds calls a “faux Ali routine,” that large crowds turn up to his fights in the hope that someone will zip his lips.
Anthony Mundine can claim, though, that he has won a World Title, an achievement that escaped his father and Dave Sands, the wonderful boxer of the 1950s who was tragically killed in a car accident before he could translate his boxing greatness into a World Championship.
I saw Dave Sands fight in Wellington against Dave Marr (an Australian) and Don Mullett, the New Zealand heavyweight champion. No one will convince me otherwise that since the Second World War, anyway, there has been a better pound-for-pound fighter than Dave Sands.
I also saw Australia’s first World Champion Jimmy Carruthers box. The fight was an unfortunate comeback affair, again in Wellington, against a tough Scot-New Zealander Jimmy Cassidy.
Carruthers was magnificent for a couple of rounds, a broad shouldered southpaw with a direct, straight-punching style. He then ran out of puff and was a defeated fighter by the end of the encounter.
Jimmy Carruthers fought the single most memorable round of any Australian fighter when he took the World Championship from Vic Toweel, the South African, in the most ferocious first round assault since Joe Louis demolished Max Schmeling in their second fight in one round.
Dave Sands, Jimmy Carruthers and Jeff Fenech, in that order, make up the best Australian boxers in the last 50 years.
Tony Mundine is some way behind this trio, but well in front in class of his son, Anthony Mundine.
colin mitchell
Guest
Choc Mundine, is no leader & doesn't speak on behalf of Aboriginal People. He just a talented sportsmen who makes (heaps of cash). Why did he give up his title & move down in weight after being offered a spot in the Super Middleweight Super Six Series, MMMMMM Why did he not fight Austin Trout, MMMMMM I wish Interim Titles were around in Tony Mundine, Hector Thompson, Dave Sands, Les Darcy & even Jeff (Flash) Malcolm days, they would have won them in their sleep?
max
Guest
i believe mundine would list his occupation as a boxer sooooo BOX MUNDINE!!!! Fight some top class fighters and win. Then love him or hate him you, you'd respect him. Otherwise quit boxing, leave it to people who want to fight and join a chat show.
westy
Guest
Damos-x..........thankyou for very informative information and comments
michell
Guest
Anthony is great. I love his mouthing off. I love watching him fight. What. So he's not humble. Who cares? And he HAS fought and beaten a champion. Danny Green was light heavyweight champion. Mundine beat him. Who cares that Danny was champion after beaten by mundine? He still lost to the man, so mundine not only is an interim world champion, hes beaten a world champion
damos_x
Guest
"4. Anthony Mundine (33-3) The former titlist gave up his belt for this? A meaningless July 30 decision against Japan's Crazy Kim (now 28-5) in which Mundine got cut and knocked down. The reality is Mundine just didn't want to fight a mandatory against Kessler, who already beat him with ease in 2005. Next: TBA" this is cut n paste from ESPN.com 's Boxing page, under rankings & i find it to be a pretty honest place to read about boxing. I like Anthony Mundine but actions speak louder than words & although I don't question the bravery of anyone who fights, Mundine is looking more & more like a fighter who isn't as keen for the real contests as he once was. The KO by Ottke probably did more damage psychologically than ever imagined & the domination by Kessler sealed the deal. So often in boxing you are one of 2 things; a rising player looking to shoot down a star, or a star looking to further cement your place in the sun. As a world title holder Mundine hasn't acted much like the latter in ditching his belt in pursuit of fights that do not help his cause & as a relative up & comer ( despite his title) he isn't looking to knock off a bigger fish. He says he wants to swim in the big pond ( and you've got to believe he does, after all, he's been a professional sportsman his whole life so he knows about achievement & motivation) but he isn't garnering the credentials to get a look in. Add to this the fact that most of the fighters around his possible fighting weights ( hi- lgt hvy, lo- mdl best - spr mdl) are actively looking elsewhere & are also prepared to fight at different weight to make matchups with big money opponents rather than defend a title already well won ( Calzaghe comes to mind, with a title Mundine is a realistic challenger but could you see Calzaghe even considering a bout ? given his money laden future as he fights Roy Jones Jnr, wins, fights Pavlik, wins & has thus sewn up 3 weight divisions & writes himself into history, or worst, loses both fights & then has to fight Hopkins for the right to be number one challenger for either fight.) Mundine is not on this radar & fighting Danny Green again will make a nice nest egg but it won't get you a seat at the big show. You only have to watch ESPN's Fri Nite Fights or similar to see boxers of similar potential & skills as Mundine. I'm not saying that he is average, far from it, but that in this arena being above average can sometimes require more than exceptional hand speed & superior footwork, sometimes even with all the pre-requisites the opportunities do not come as planned or expected. Mundine has every box ticked as far as being a top boxer goes, but he is now on the brink of missing the bus as far as real recognition in the wider audience. In Australia he is well known & can command attention by speaking in public as easily as he can achieve acclaim by winning fights. In the rest of the world he is relatively unknown & loses his public image which just leaves the boxing & whilst it has been hopeful his best chances may have come & gone without anyone really realising it. You see in the Ranking's that he fights at 33-3 & 2 of those losses came against fighters recognised as being pretty decent boxers( Ottke & Kessler) so why no re-match or chances against other fighters of this calibre ? Mundine was KO'd by Ottke, a fighter who was not known as a big puncher {34-0-6 ko's} & well beaten by Kessler & thus dropped out of the top tier & has never really done anything to regain it. Soliman, Green, a succession of names nobody can remember clearly & now just when a possible fight looms with one of the names ( Kessler) it evaporates as quickly as smoke in a breeze. Mundine's career & legacy are heading towards a safe port & that is no terrible thing, who wouldn't want to know they had secured their financial future at such a relatively young age & good luck to him, he's been punched in the head more times than I'd like to be for the pleasure of said economic prosperity, but one can't help feel that I'd have liked to have seen more of Anthony Mundine on the stage graced by Kostya Tzu for example. Tzu fought & acted like a true champion & in all honesty did it with a fraction of the natural talent Mundine possesses, so imagine seeing those talents in action against the top men in his weight class. You'd have to believe that he'd at he'd hold his own which brings in the alternative theory that Mundine really is a threat & the top men are dodging him, thus denying him the chance to achieve by way of contractual dodge ball or just being plain cold shouldered. There is a remedy to this but Mundine is too far gone in the world to take this road, by going to the US & fighting his way up, by fighting every 6 weeks & showing just how slick he is. Watch the fights on tv, there are a hundred mis-matches a year but you see the cream that will rise a lot too. Those who shine are more in the spotlight than any fighter in Australia because the audience is so much larger. Mundine will fight Green again & probably win, but more importantly he will not fight Calzaghe, Hopkins, Kessler et al & I for one find that to be a real shame.
Russ Stewart
Guest
Tony Mundine achieved a greater status with the Australian/Eurpean audience in defeat than Anthony has received in any so called 'Victory'. Tony fought good decent fighters, the like's of Max Cohen. Bennie Briscoe, Bunny Stirling and Carlos Marks to name just a few. Anthony should be fighting the likes of Carl Froch, Edison Miranda, Jeff Lacy or even (too late now) Joe Calzaghe. Crazy Kim has a decent 'on-paper' record but although I follow the sport I had to scratch my head to wonder who the heck was 'Crazy Kim'. Anthony does have great ability but the public demand to see their heroes 'tested' rather than a having a safety first 2nd or 3rd fight that has some predictability about it. For me I would suggest that Anthony fights Carl Froch now ranked #1 WBA. The problem is, nobody really knows Anthony outside of Sydney and the Foxtel Studios. Maybe he should take himself on tour ? Russ/Brisbane
True Tah
Guest
Guys, I can't see how Mundine could be considered an idiot. I don't know what you guys earn, but Mundine earns more from one fight than I have to date in my life (granted I have only been working for 7 years), but then again he's had a few fights. I guess that makes me the idiot! Given that he has been a professional in two very differant sports (league and boxing), I don't think anyone can doubt his ability as an athlete. He has become an outstanding boxer, and I personally thought he never got the recognition in league that he deserved, and should have had a lot more Origin appearances. I don't agree with some of the things he says, and I thought it was a tad harsh to criticise Cathy Freeman for being unable to lead the Aboriginal people for being a woman.
Nigel Martin
Guest
Boxing is a show. Anthony Mundine puts on (like him or loathe him) a good show. He was a very good rugby league player IMHO. His father was quiet and reserved the way many aboriginal people are, he was technically a good boxer too, but did he make any money?
bob
Guest
Mundine is a very good boxer. Is he great? only time will tell. But one thing for sure is that he is a moron an embarrasment to his people, Australia and himself and hes gonna look every inch the moron if Danny Green knocks his block of which i think he will. When hes beaton some big name fighters then he can talk the talk but until then it would be good if he showed som humility and brains and just shut up.
Andy
Guest
What a bad article. And what bad responses from the two people. First of all Anthony has more natural talent and ability than his father has ever had. Both will tell you this and any decent boxing fan will aswell. 2nd : Anthony talks it up, but hes only a few wins from being a global boxing star. If your saying he can't beat Kelly Pavlik, widely regarded as the best MW in the world, than your simply dillusional. I think this bagging out of Anthony Mundine is old. Get over it. While hes not the most intelligent person, hes a fantastic boxer. So get over it guys. This article is inaccurate. Maybe tell this to Anthonys face. Because hes gifted in the ring. And hes better than his father. And hes going to knock off some massive names!
GregC
Guest
Spiro I have to be honest and say that I don't have anywhere near the knowledge you do on the history of boxing. I can only say that from my perspective that Anthony Mundine is an idiot, and that this makes it difficult to fully appreciate his boxing ability. For instance, his mindless comments about Cathy Freeman, his drivel about conspiracies and September 11. Of these two examples, it is the criticism of Cathy Freeman which is most bewildering. Stating that Freeman has ‘sold out’, and that she cannot be considered a true leader in the Aboriginal community because she is a woman. This coming from man who has converted to Islam, which has never been a part of Aboriginal culture. Not only that, but it seems that he has picked up a fairly backward version of Islam in which women are considered of less value than men. This is astounding, if we consider how important mothers, aunts, great aunts, sisters, daughters, nieces etc are to Aboriginal kinship groups. On top of this, Mundine claims to be a true leader of the Aboriginal people (I’m guessing he means the male half of the population). In reality however, he’s far too selfish and stupid to lead his people. I am struggling to think what Mundine will do with himself after he retires from boxing. Perhaps become an imam and preach the ‘word’?
sheek
Guest
Muhammed Ali could talk the talk, & walk the walk. What's more, he talked with intelligence, knowledge, passion & above all, humour. His wit was as fast as his fists. And he walked with exquisite skill, grace & class. Poor old Anthony Mundine doesn't get it. To talk like Ali you must also walk like Ali. Mundine does neither anywhere near as well. Spiro, never saw Dave Sands but stories of him are legendary. I loved those late 60s-early 70s, Lionel Rose against Fighting Harada & Johnny Famechon against Jose Legra. What cool names, especially those with Spanish names - Monzon, Legra, Churcho Castillo & Ruben Olivares.