Jeff Fenech fears Australian boxing is losing respect internationally after a horror run of stoppage losses amongst 10 consecutive world title fight defeats in the past year.
But the former three-division world champion also believes there's hope on the horizon and his cruiserweight Jai Opetaia - Australia's youngest-ever Olympic boxer - can be at the forefront of a revival in the years following his pro debut next month.
Australians have made losing a habit in world title bouts from Moscow and Tokyo to New York, Atlantic City, Carson and Biloxi - in many cases, Fenech argues, from taking big fights too early in their careers.
The run of demoralising stoppage losses continued last weekend when the victims were Daniel Geale and Vic Darchinyan, arguably Australia's two most successful boxers of the past decade.
Former dual middleweight world champion Geale was stopped in four rounds by WBC title holder Miguel Cotto and ex-two division champion Darchinyan couldn't go beyond the eighth round in his challenge to Argentina's WBA featherweight champ Jesus Cuellar.
"Seeing what they (Geale and Darchinyan) are going through shatters me," said Fenech, who used to train both men.
The last time a fighter born in Australia, or recognised as based in the country, won a globally-recognised world title fight was in May 2014, when Sam Soliman won the IBF middleweight title against Felix Sturm in Germany.
The same day, Darchinyan was knocked out by WBA featherweight champion Nicholas Walters.
In the space of 12 months since, Australians have lost in 10 consecutive world title fights sanctioned by the four most universally-recognised boxing bodies.
Seven of the defeats came inside the distance and, of those, only Darchinyan's bout last weekend went more than five rounds.
The only Australian-based boxers to go the distance in that barren run were the iron-chinned duo of Soliman and Cameroon-born Sakio Bika, twice.
Geale suffered two early stoppages to Gennady Golovkin and Cotto and others to fall before the sixth round in title contests were super featherweight Billy Dib, light heavyweight Blake Caparello, super middleweight Ben McCulloch and middleweight Jarrod Fletcher.
Fenech felt premature world title opportunities taken before boxers had beaten the best domestic competition was one reason for Australia's recent malaise.
"To me it's pretty sad to see all these guys go over there and all it does is it make Australian boxing lose respect," Fenech told AAP.
"You've got to be the best in Australia before you can fight anybody else I believe and once you've gone through the Australian rankings, then have a look at it.
"I don't care how many sanction fees you pay, if you're not Australian champion and the best in the country, why should you get the opportunity to fight for any (world) title?"
Among other leading Australians to suffer a significant loss overseas in the past year were former interim lightweight world champion Michael Katsidis, heavyweight world title contender Alex Leapai, featherweight Joel Brunker, super featherweight Will Tomlinson and light middleweight Daniel Dawson.
"I feel for the boys, I feel for Australian boxing at the moment," Fenech said.
"Hopefully we can turn it around.
"Jai Opetaia I believe is one guy who I think has got the most amazing potential I've seen for a long long time.
"If we can get it right, we've got somebody who can make a big noise not just in Australia but throughout the whole world."
Opetaia won the 2011 world amateur junior light heavyweight title and became Australia's youngest Olympic boxer in London in 2012, when he was 17.
The 19-year-old from the NSW central coast is scheduled to make his pro debut in melbourne next month and Fenech plans to have him fight around six times in his first six months in the paid ranks.
"Jai Opetaia I believe will put Australian boxing back on the map," Fenech said.
"This kid is amazing, The first day I watched him spar I thought `my God, what have we got here?'"
Opetaia has already sparred with Fenech's 36-year-old world-ranked heavyweight Lucas Browne (22-0), who may be one of the next Australians to get a world title shot.
In the vanguard of the younger generation is 27-year-old welterweight Jeff Horn, (9-0) who fights higher world-ranked Ghanaian Richmond Djarbeng in New Zealand on Saturday.
"He (Horn) looks like he's got the goods, he's one of those kids that's really tough," Fenech said.
The list of other Olympians and former amateur stars also making their way up the treacherous professional ladder include super featherweight Paul Fleming (20-0), welterweight Cameron Hammond (12-0), super featherweight Luke Jackson (8-0) and light heavyweight Damien Hooper (10-1).
DOWN FOR THE TEN COUNT - AUSTRALIAN BOXING'S TEN WORLD TITLE LOSSES OVER A PAINFUL PAST 12 MONTHS
*JULY 2014 - Middleweight, GENNADY GOLOVKIN TKO 3 DANIEL GEALE, New York, USA
*AUG 2014 - Light heavyweight, SERGEY KOVALEV TKO 2 BLAKE CAPARELLO, Atlantic City USA
*Middleweight - DANIEL JACOBS TKO 5 JARROD FLETCHER, New York, USA
*Super middleweight - ANTHONY DIRRELL UD 12 SAKIO BIKA, Carson, USA
*October 2014 - Middleweight - JERMAIN TAYLOR UD 12 SAM SOLIMAN, Biloxi, USA
*December 2014 - Super middleweight FEDOR CHUDINOV KO 2 BEN MCCULLOCH, Moscow, Russia
*April 2015 - Light heavyweight - ADONIS STEVENSON UD 12 SAKIO BIKA, Quebec, Canada.
*May 2015 - Super featherweight - TAKASHI MIURA TKO 3 BILLY DIB Tokyo, Japan.
*June 2015 - Middleweight - MIGUEL COTTO TKO 4 DANIEL GEALE, New York, USA
*Featherweight - JESUS CUELLAR KO 8 VIC DARCHINYAN Carson, USA
Share
