Matthew Macklin
All Tipperary eyes will be on Matthew Macklin’s middleweight quest to become a World Champion, when he fights Uruguayan Rafael Sosa Pintos , at the National Boxing Stadium in Dublin on December 5th next.
Macklin’s fame has risen rapidly in the last year with two quickfire wins over his Birmingham rival Wayne Elcock and Finn Amin Asikainen, the former having been won in the third round, the latter in the first.
His opponent Sosa Pintos, the Uruguayan champion, has 34 wins from 38 bouts, but the last year has not been as good to him. Two of his four career defeats have come in the last five fights since November 2008. However he appeared to bounce back in August by knocking out fellow Uruguayan Wilson Enrique Galli in the seventh round to claim the vacant national title.
Macklin, a Birmingham born Irish professional boxer, Dad came from Roscommon and Mother came from Tipperary, last fought in Dublin in March 2008 when he beat Yory Boy Campos on points at the National Stadium.
Matthew Macklin is also a talented hurling player in his own right and represented Tipperary, in hurling, at all age levels up to Under 21 at Inter County level. Macklin is still a close friend of leading hurler Eoin Kelly and attends hurling events such as the Poc Fada and other GAA events when Tipperary are involved. With Boxing however, he is not taking anything for granted but he is keen to replicate his UK form for an Irish audience.
Macklin’s is now at the right end of WBO, IBF and WBC rankings, at fourth, fifth and eighth respectively and has a European defence against Russian Federation’s Dmitry Pirog organised for sometime in the New Year.
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