Boxing: I'll take my time with Sullivan says Mundine

By PETER JESSUP

Anthony Mundine's instructions from his famous father, Tony, are to feel Sean Sullivan out for the early rounds of their Saturday fight before he tries to take the Kiwi apart.

Mundine senior has a lot of respect for Sullivan, given the time the 34-year-old South Aucklander has been around and because of impressive performances against Australian fighters with whom he is familiar.

But he firmly believes his son will prevail in the 12-round Pan Asian Boxing Association super-middleweight title fight at Auckland's ASB Stadium.

"Sean Sullivan will be crafty, he'll be tough, but Anthony has that great left hand and we'll see how much Sean likes that in his face," Tony said yesterday.

Father and son flew into Auckland just after midday and went straight to a Warriors training session at Cornwall Park, Anthony declaring the team were right up with his beloved St George in his thoughts.

"I wanted you guys to win, bad," he told coach Daniel Anderson, in a reference to their grand final appearance last year.

He spoke to Stacey Jones, Monty Betham and other Warriors and said later that he had wanted to catch up with players he had met on the field "who had always been gentlemen."

He will run with the squad in a training session open to the public at Ericsson Stadium on Thursday at 11am.

Mundine junior said he would not mind if Saturday's fight went to late rounds - he was ready for it, in condition mentally and physically, and looking forward to learning from Sullivan's experience in the ring.

"As long as I do it [win] convincingly ... I want to be in control of the fight.

"I'm here to entertain, I'm a showman," he declared.

But it was a quietly-spoken Mundine on show yesterday, no rash braggart.

After learning how to be a professional in his only loss in 17 fights - a round-10 knockout at the hands of IBF world champion Sven Ottke - Mundine said he hoped to get another title fight in June or July, for the WBA belt. That association ranks him its No 2.

"I'll feel I've failed if I don't hold that belt. Number two in the world is not good enough for me," Mundine said.

He felt a responsibility, as an achieving and self-confident Aborigine, to show an example to his people and speak out on their behalf. But it was not a burden.

"I want to own towns. I want to own countrysides, to help other Aboriginal kids and give my self-confidence to other brothers and sisters."

His father sat quietly listening. Tony had said he didn't want his son to follow him into boxing.

Yesterday he admitted he had changed his mind somewhat and Anthony's loss to Ottke, and his behaviour afterwards, had prompted that.

"Before that he wouldn't listen to me, he was so cocky.

"Now he realises how hard it is. He's doing all the hard work I want him to.

"He said he would turn the sport around [in Australia] and he has."

Anthony was about 1.5kg over the weight limit yesterday, but said he would have no trouble wasting that ahead of Friday's weigh-in.