Boxing: Mundine bout in sight for locals

By PETER JESSUP

The spectre of league runaway Anthony Mundine hangs over the fight card at Auckland's Alexandra Park this Saturday.

The headline bout will feature a probable future opponent for the Aborigine fighter.

Mundine has had five fights since he turned to pro-boxing in the middle of last year, but all have been carefully selected to give him time in the ring without any chance of a beating.

Soon he will have to move on to challenge for titles and Saturday's promoter, Mike Edwards, has both feet in the door in that regard with two regional champions.

Accomplished kickboxer Jason Rarere, of Napier, who is keen to meet Mundine, will clash with tough Christchurch contender Sean Unwin for the vacant Pan Asian middleweight title.

Edwards also has another opponent waiting in the wings in Timo Masua, who holds the Pan Asian super-middleweight belt.

Masua would come into contention if the confident Mundine elects to go up a division to seek a world title he desperately wants.

Mundine, the Australian super-middleweight champion, needs to win a Pan Asian title before he will be ranked by the serious world boxing organisations.

The Pan Asian Boxing Association covers an area from Russia down through Asia and Oceania.

"We're keen to get him here. Jason wants a go with him," Edwards said.

Rarere, aged 28, is stronger than he was when he lost his Pan Asian light-middleweight title to the world-ranked Kevin Kelly.

After kickboxing overseas for 18 months, Rarere is back determined to make a mark. Unwin is expected to give him a hard workout over 12 three-minute rounds.

Also on the card is Gerrard Zohs, the former New Zealand super-middleweight champion, who made a return to be beaten by Mundine in his first-up pro-fight.

Zohs, 28, meets another toughie in 34-fight amateur-turning-pro David Anderson of Tauranga. Zohs has had two wins, the last a fifth-round KO, since the Mundine beating.

New Zealand heavyweight titleholder Kipa Tasefa comes back from a near two-year break with a serious shoulder injury to put his 28-2 record and title on the line. He meets Wellingtonian Tone Fiso, who has KO victories to his name.

Australian former world champ Jeff Malcolm, at 41 still regarded as one of the fittest around and with 132 fights behind him, meets East Coast up-and-comer David Wiremu, 23.

The youngest-ever New Zealand champion in 17-year-old lightweight Santos Pakau, 11-0 as a pro, meets a Thai kickboxing champ, Jaruad Aborruin.