Rahim Mundine says his immediate focus remains making his NRL debut despite following in his famous father’s footsteps by winning his first boxing fight.
The young Wests Tigers fullback/five-eighth won convincingly on points against Lepani Levatia at Sydney’s Aware Super Theatre on Wednesday night, displaying some of the speed, slick movement and showmanship of old man Anthony.
“A good experience for me given I’ve never had any amateur or pro fights,” Mundine told reporters afterwards, while sporting the obligatory shiner.
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“My first real fight so a good learning curve for me and I want to do it again in the future.”
Anthony was in his son’s corner offering support but appeared too nervous to speak when the Stan Event commentary team crossed to him for a word.
“He was alright, just ‘work on the inside,’ I’ve never really worked on the inside before, I’m more of an outside boxer,” Mundine Jr said.
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“He was a bit taller than me so he felt a bit out of my range.”
Mundine will now turn his attention back to reigniting his league career with the Tigers.
“I’ll try and do it (boxing) in the off-seasons from footy but my main goal right now is just to crack it in league. I had a bit of a down year last year, I was playing NSW Cup, debuted when I was 19 but got injured early in the season. So I’m just here to start my 2022 off with a bang…
“If I ever go to boxing fulltime I’ll probably be much lighter than what I am right now. I thought I handled the occasion well.”
In the buildup to the fight, Mundine Sr claimed that he never wanted his son – dubbed “CJ” to follow him into the ring.
“He wants me to, he’s full of it bro,” Rahim retorted.
“He’s the one that told me to get in there bro! I was a bit wary at the start because I haven’t boxed in a long time. I used to train when I was younger but once I got in the gym I started feeling myself again.”
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