CHAT SESSION 39 with Michael Zerafa
Topic- Patient, Silent and Weathering the Storms of Life. Stronger each time!
Catch up and listen to our chat session https://megaphone.link/LCRUI9197090925
Monday 22nd January 2024 1pm https://rppfm.com.au
Growing up:
Michael Zerafa grew up in a middle-class family and started boxing at the age of seven. His parents were not keen on him training to become a professional boxer but despite their efforts Michael made it his mission to collect lunch money so that he could pay for his own gym entry. Determined, disciplined and with a vison in sight, Michael knew that one day he would become a world champion.
When Michael turned fourteen, he got a job to fund paying for his own training sessions. He would rise early each morning so that he could do a workout before school began and would train after work without anyone knowing. It was tough on Michael at the time as he didn’t have any support. He would sacrifice all his time outside of school and work to the sport he loved while most other teenagers were hanging out with friends having fun. At the age of fifteen Michael decided he no longer wanted to attend school and began to focus solely on boxing and working to earn a living for himself.
Fighting:
Michael had his first pro fight on his eighteenth birthday although he nearly missed out because the weigh in took place when he was seventeen years old. Luckily the fight went ahead, and Michael entered the boxing ring as a professional boxer for the very first time. After winning his first fight with a KO (knockout) he followed on with another five fights winning all five in the same year. Within three years, he had another eight fights and eight wins. He also fought for the Commonwealth Super Welterweight title on two weeks’ notice. Eight months later, Michael was called to fight for an interim world title against Kell Brook. What Brook thought would have been an easy win ended up going the distance. Until this day, Kell brook has only gone the distance with a handful of fighters.
Twelve months later a fight against Jeff Horn was on the cards. Little did Michael Zerafa know it would be that fight that would make history for him! Taking Jeff's WBA, (World Boxing Association) WBO (World Boxing Organization) and IBF (International Boxing Federation) titles escalated Zerafa to number four in the world. A second fight with Horn that still raises eyebrows and questions to this day was full of controversy but despite all the red tape and politics it is one of the greatest Australian fights in history!
Soon after the pandemic hit and everyone around the world was in lockdown. With no timeline of a new reality or what was happening globally, and no shows locked in, there were no fighters in Australia who wanted to fight other than the man himself; Anthony Mundine. Ironically Mundine was the one person Michael Zerafa looked up to as a kid. He would watch his idol on television and never missed watching the fights. Michael would also mimic his actions. When he was thirteen years old, he reached out to Anthony Mundine via MySpace with a dream to fight him one day. To everyone’s surprise Mundine replied saying “if you're looking to be beat, I'm the man to meet”. Fourteen years later Michael's dream became a reality. The fight took place at Bendigo stadium and although Zerafa was confronted with mixed thoughts and opinions from people around him and in the boxing world, he went on to beat Mundine in the first round by KO.
During the last eighteen months, Michael Zerafa has had two fights. The most notable was against Issac Hardman, a loud, confident guy who was undefeated until April 2022 when Michael knocked him out within four minutes.
Michael Zerafa is currently ranked number one in the world in the WBA (World Boxing Association). Mandatory for a world title, Zerafa’s path is clear and his vision of becoming a world champion is within arm’s reach.
My hope is that when you’re looking at yourself in the
‘The Daily Mirror’
YOU SMILE
EMBRACE BEING YOU
AND FIND 10 MINUTES IN YOUR DAY TO NOURISH YOUR SOUL!
To get in touch with Cathy email smileinthedailymirror@gmail.com
'The Daily Mirror' acknowledges Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people as the Traditional Custodians of the land and acknowledges and pays respect to their Elders, past and present.
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