Imran Gashkori | Sports Journalist | [email protected]
29 October, 2014. 11:30
BOXING royalty have today confirmed that former Neighbours star and Australian pop princess, Delta Goodrem has taken a break from her grueling schedule of concert tours and talent shows to try her hand at a completely new field. Amatuer boxing.
Rumors have been rife in boxing circles for many months now regarding the possibility of a household name in pop music entering the ranks of Australian female boxing.
As of 9 o’clock this morning, former Rugby League star and two-time WBA Super Middleweight Champion, Anthony Mundine and his father Tony, have confirmed that the starlet at the centre of these rumours is in fact Delta Goodrem. They also revealed that she has been training toward her debut amateur bout as a member of TEAM MUNDINE, at Tony’s iconic gym in Redfern, Sydney.
Delta has also clarified the whispers and has stated that her decision to try her hand at boxing resulted from her love of both high-combat and kickboxing fitness, a strict regime she has kept she began her concert tours as a late teen.
Her rise through the exclusive fitness circuits in both Sydney and Melbourne led her to several one-on-one sessions with a range of Australian boxing greats including Kostya Tszyu and Jeff Fenech, before coming under the tutelage of the Mundine family.
“I have always thought about it, I always like testing myself with different environments and challenges… it wasn’t until I wrapped things up with The Voice (Australian Talent Show) that I thought I might have a bit more time on my hands to [work towards] an amateur bout”
Delta was introduced to the family after she was invited as a guest by Jeff Fenech and his wife, Suzee, to watch Anthony Mundine fight former IBF welterweight champion Josuhua Clottey in Newcastle on April 9th.
“I met them in the sheds after the match and even though Choc (Anthony) had lost the fight, there was something about the atmosphere there. I approached Tony on the spot and hit him up,”
Delta laughs as she explains her journey with Team Mundine, an experience she unofficially confirmed through an instagram post of her working out in the Mundine gym late last week.
Tony Mundine, the patriarch of the Mundine boxing dynasty is himself a former Australian boxer, and one of the country’s most accomplished Indigenous fighters at that. Before making his name as the boxing coach for his son and the rest of the Team Mundine stable (including the likes of rugby stars Quade Cooper and Sonny Bill Williams), Tony was the only Australian boxer to compete professionally in four weight divisions. He held the Australian middleweight, light heavyweight, cruiserweight and heavyweight titles, as well as the Commonwealth middleweight and light heavyweight titles
Tony says Delta has been a welcome addition to Team Mundine and has impressed him with her ability to ‘hold her own’ in such a male-dominated environment.
My first session with Delts was just a spar back in July… I could tell then that she had at least a couple scraps in her. She might look like a bit of a glamour but she is a real pitbull in the ring
he says between explosive laughs.
Delta’s first fight in the amateur circuit is looking be scheduled in early January but she says she is in no rush.
I just want to learn as much as I can before I put the gloves on for real, I have really gone all out. No more drinking and I have cut down on a lot of the carbs. I have been spending a lot of time with Choc and Sonny Bill, these guys have shown me what it means to be an athlete.
Asked if he thinks Delta could be the next champ, Tony replied with all honesty.
She probably could be, but she’d need to make a decision between us and the limelight. This kind of thing takes years and the odd tour with her singing could really be a spanner in the works,
But christ, I’d hate to be the first bird we put her up against… She’s ready to take someone’s head off. She has been for months now.
