“I’ve got more speed than Lightning McQueen,” said Anthony Mundine after his 7th round knockout victory over Bronco McKart in Las Vegas Saturday night on Wealth TV pay-per-view — probably the first, and most likely the last, reference ever made to Disney/Pixar’s “Cars” in a professional boxing ring.
Sydney’s Mundine (44-4, 26KO) more or less dominated the middleweight bout with his hand speed, lead right hand and combination punching. Michigan’s McKart (54-10-1, 32KO) had the odd moment but it was usually because the Australian was taking a breather.
In fact, “The Man” probably could have stopped matters earlier than he did, but instead chose to take his foot off the pedal. His key weapons were his lead right and his right uppercut, which he set up with flashy looking bodywork and combinations along the ropes.
The stoppage came after a series of knockdowns in the 7th, the first from a clubbing left hook and the second from an arcing right hand. With nearly a minute left in the round, McKart’s corner threw in the towel after their fighter ate a series of Mundine uppercuts along the ropes.
After the fight Mundine, who is a client of big time manager Cameron Dunkin, said that he wanted to stay at 154 lbs. and work towards facing Floyd Mayweather, Miguel Cotto and Saul Alvarez. Floyd Mayweather Sr., who was in the ring for some reason, only added to the absurdity.
Mundine, who was accompanied by dad and 1970s middleweight contender Tony Mundine, is flawed in and out of the ring, but he looked good tonight. He does have pretty flashy hand speed and seemed more powerful than in previous outings. That could be from weighing in at 156 lbs. when he’s been used to fighting at 154, or it could just be that his body is adjusting to the lower weight.
“The Man” has got a big mouth, but hopefully he’s finally making good on his promises. The Cotto and Mayweather talk is silly, but now that he has his American debut out of the way, hopefully Dunkin will steer Mundine towards a meaningful match at 154 lbs. God knows, there are enough of them to be made.
