Lani Daniels boxing fight cancelled, Waikato fighters showcased in new event

Alex Mukuka (blue) took on Mathew Crawford (red) during the lightweight final of the 2021 National Amateur Boxing Championships. Photo / Photosport

Waikato boxer Alex Mukuka, 28, is set to make his professional boxing debut in Te Awamutu in May.

He will take on Ross Malthus from Whangārei in the headline fight of an event called Ironfist Promotions presents: Chasing Greatness, which will be held instead of Lani Daniels’ IBF world light heavyweight title fight against Nailini Helu.

Daniels’ fight in Taupō was cancelled due to venue issues and rising costs. She is currently not booked to defend the title.

Mukuka is an experienced amateur boxer who represented New Zealand at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and participated in three Olympic qualifying events.

He is a four-time New Zealand national amateur champion across the lightweight and featherweight divisions, winning the amateur titles consecutively four years in a row.

After his loss in the last Olympic qualifier in Thailand in May 2024, he announced he would be transitioning to professional boxing.

However, there are not many boxers who fight at 57kg in the featherweight division in New Zealand, which means in the future, he might have to compromise on his weight and potentially fight as high as 66kg in the welterweight division, which is considered a big risk.

Mukuka’s opponent Malthus recently had a resurgence in his career, coming off two wins.

Malthus also comes from an amateur boxing background.

He started his professional career with a three-loss streak, losing to Eugene Amohia, Dylan Archer and Sonny Morini, but more recently, Malthus has begun to change the narrative with a massive win over Peach boxing Zane Adams by TKO last July.

Adams was on a seven-win streak at the time, and it was considered a massive upset.

Malthus went on to win against WKL Kickboxing New Zealand lightweight champion Daniel Mataio in December last year by first-round knockout.

Ironfist Promotions presents: Chasing Greatness will be held at Te Awamutu Event Centre on May 3.

Apart from the Mukuka vs Malthus fight, there will be three others, including Jadene Treadaway vs Tania Barnett and Cole Campbell vs Herewaka Katipa, which were initially on the Daniels vs Helu undercard.

• Lightweight, 4x3 minute rounds: Alex Mukuka vs Ross Malthus
• Super Lightweight, 5x2 minute rounds: Jadene Treadaway (Putāruru) vs Tania Barnett (Palmerston North)
• Cruiserweight, 4x3 minute rounds: Cole Campbell (Taupō) vs Herewaka Katipa (Hamilton)
• Middleweight, 4x2 minute rounds: Nikah Perez (Taumarunui) vs Stacey loye (Hawke’s Bay)