Inga Tuigamala with his son Jordan, who says carrying his father's name into the boxing ring adds a huge amount of pressure but it also offers a leg up. Photo / Brett Phibbs
Growing up as the son of a famous All Black, Jordan Tuigamala knows what it's like to be judged against an impossibly high standard.
For much of his life, he simply wasn't interested in sport. When he did finally decide to give it a crack, it's no surprise the slightly-built
son of the giant Inga-the-Winger decided to largely steer clear of the rugby field. Instead, he took up boxing, following in the footsteps of famous uncle, David Tua.
In the Tuigamala family, it's the rugby player Inga who is the sporting outcast. His sons, Jordan and Bubba (Vaise), a 125kg heavyweight prospect who also turns professional in coming weeks, were raised at the feet of champions. As well as uncle David, they've hung out with and been instructed by former world middleweight champion Maselino Masoe and former Australasian light heavyweight champ Alex Sua. The boxing bug skipped Inga, but his sons are hooked. Even though he's chosen a different path to his dad, Jordan knows his debut on the upcoming Joseph Parker vs Francois Botha card will attract plenty of scrutiny.
"Yeah bro - a whole lot of pressure," is how he describes carrying the Tuigamala name into the ring. "I wasn't really a sports person, I just wasn't interested in sport. And then when I did start to give it a go, there was no turning back. The pressure was just massive. I'm trying to work on not letting it get to me."
The famous surname cuts both ways. Expectation might be high, but Jordan knows his father's fame gives him a leg up in the publicity stakes. For a professional fighter, gaining a profile is at least half the battle.
