By Eoin Redahan

“Oh the shark, babe, has such teeth, dear
And it shows them pearly and white
Just a jack knife has old MacHeath babe,
And he keeps it, ah, out of sight…”

Even in the mouths of silken-tongued crooners, the protagonist from Mack the Knife was a murderer, a robber, a rapist, and an arsonist. Yes, old Macky was a man that could hasten your demise with the mere swish of his digits.

Strangely, this MacHeath character has been an enduring muse: he was born in a German opera and traversed decades through the billowing lungs of Louis Armstrong, Bobby Darin, Frank Sinatra, and several others. For now, his renown is fittingly nurtured in the moniker of Irish middleweight prospect Matthew “Mack the Knife” Macklin.

As nicknames go, it is better than most (honorable mention to Roy “Captain Hook” Jones). Like MacHeath, Macklin is a man avoided by his peers; he has partaken in brutal scuffles, and, for the most part, he has worked with clinical ruthlessness. In the past year, he has bypassed the exploits of fellow Irish middleweights John Duddy and Andy Lee, and is now near the head of the middleweight contender queue.

It would appear that the Birmingham-based boxer of Irish parentage is endowed with many of the attributes needed to become a world champion. He has excellent hand speed and vicious power off both hands; he has developed nimble footwork, shifty head movement, and has generally boxed with intelligence and patience since his knockout defeat to Jamie Moore over three years ago.  

The weight drained, overzealous Matthew Macklin that suffered a brutal knockout in the 10th round that night looked like a different fighter. From the first bell, Macklin showed fleeting regard for his defense, throwing barrages of punches; however, as Moore had predicted prior to the fight, Macklin faded badly by the middle rounds. This would be the last time that Macklin would fight at light middleweight and the last time he would taste the sour spittle of defeat. 

It may be an exhausted cliché, but most athletes will tell you that they learned more from defeat than they did from victory. Since the Moore defeat, Macklin has made a string of trainer changes and altered his approach in fights. While the constant change may have been unsettling, he has developed into a more efficient and patient operator.

He also improved by treading a path of firm resistance. Macklin has battled his way though some difficult bouts against crafty veterans and durable journeymen, before taking on British titleholder Wayne Elcock at the start of 2009.

The result was spectacular. Macklin has displayed a twitching speed and a defensive guile seldom seen in bygone bouts. Elcock was prodding at shadows until he descended into his own veil of darkness with a resounding third round knockout defeat. Macklin may have made an important statement with that victory, but he was still a man in a hurry.

Six months later, the evolution from pretender to contender was complete when Macklin challenged Amin Asikainen for the European middleweight title. The Finnish veteran had a reputation for being iron-fisted, and he had previously knocked out current IBF titleholder Sebastian Sylvester (though the defeat was avenged); nevertheless, two and a half minutes and a stinging left hook to the chin later, Macklin stood over his crumpled associate as British and European champion.

A convincing points win over Uruguayan Rafael Sosa Pintos in December has compounded Macklin’s position as Ireland’s leading middleweight contender. He is now ranked #5 in the Ring magazine’s middleweight ladder, and should only be one bout a way from a world title challenge. 

All of this would intimate that Macklin is settled in his methods, but this is far from the case. After the best year of his career so far with Joe Gallacher, he has decided to change trainers yet again. His decision to join up with Freddie Roach is not only indicative of his impatience and ambition; it embodies Macklin’s bolstered profile.   

Many would argue that with his power, speed, and improved ring craft, Macklin has enough ammunition in his armory to worry any of the top middleweights; however, lingering doubts persist. It remains to be seen what happens if he comes up against an excellent destructive counter puncher, as he did against Moore, or if he can resist a slugfest if the occasion presented itself. 

Former Irish amateur champion Mick Dowling has been very impressed by Macklin’s exploits in the past year, but he feels that improvement is necessary: “With Macklin, I’d expect him to shift up one more gear, but he’s had so little fighting in the last 10 months.” In that regard, Macklin has fallen victim to his own ruthless efficiency in the ring. His recent 10-round victory over Pintos, however, will leave him better prepared for tougher fights to come.

Macklin is slated to defend his European title in Birmingham on April 16, though the opponent is yet to be announced. He was due to fight dangerous Russian Dmitry Pirog (15-0) – rated #2 in the WBO rankings – but this seems to have fallen through; Pirog’s victory over Eric Mitchell last Saturday may have cleared the way for a title shot of his own.

Pirog claims to have been dodged by Macklin and criticized him in an interview with Allboxing.ru for being “a home fighter, who is used to perform under local judging.”

While neither man would admit it, the collapse of the proposed matchup may a relief to both fighters. Given the form and prowess of Pirog and Macklin, there would be too much at stake for the loser, especially in a non-title bout. Macklin may yet have the luxury of beating a less-skilled opponent ahead of a world-title shot.

In an ideal world, he would face IBF champion Sebastian Sylvester, who is regarded by some as the weakest of the belt holders. Macklin has expressed an interest in fighting the German, but like many in the division, Sylvester has been blaringly quiet about fighting the Irish prospect.

Unbeaten Briton Darren Barker’s name has been mooted, but this fight would represent a step backwards for Macklin. The other name that has been circulated is that of fellow Irish prospect Andy Lee. Both fighters have expressed an interest in fighting each other at some stage in their careers, but it is doubtful that they will lock fists any time soon. As former four-weight Irish champion Jim Rock explained, “As much as I’d like to see them get in the ring and get it on, I can’t see it happening. If Macklin boxes and he lost, then that would be his European title gone, and a shot at a world title would [also] be gone.”

Nevertheless, the overriding impression one gets from Macklin is that he is unconcerned about holding on to British and European belts. He is full of confidence and is aggressively seeking out a world middleweight title. As Billy Walsh, Head Coach of the Irish Amateur Boxing Association High Performance Programme, said, “Matthew is laying down the marker. He will fight any of them.”

The boxing world is finally paying heed to the exploits of Matthew Macklin, and the middleweight supremos have probably become that bit more mindful of the belts around their waists. As Bobby Darin crooned all those years ago,

“…Someone’s sneakin’ round the corner
Could that someone be Mack the Knife?”

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