Daniel Geale confirms move to super middleweight

 
FORMER unified middleweight champion Daniel Geale has confirmed his intentions to continue his professional career as a super middleweight.

 
Speaking at the unveiling of Dave Sands Lane in Glebe, Geale gave credence to the legendary resume of the iconic Sands, while also discussing the future trajectory of his own career.

 
“It’s a little bit emotional to be honest, the ceremony that took place today,” said Geale in an interview with Ben Damon. “It was great to see a lot of people around as well and I did enjoy myself, as well,”

 
“The Dave Sands story is a great one, for anybody that wants to look it up, it’s definitely a great read,”

 
“He was a great fighter and he’s somebody that inspired me as well,”

 
Geale, 34, has suffered knockout losses in two of his past three fights – albeit at the hands of leading middleweights – in the form of titleholders Gennady Golovkin and future Hall of Famer Miguel Cotto.

 
The most recent loss to Cotto saw Geale meet the heavy-handed Puerto Rican at a controversial 157 pound catchweight, a weight that Geale hadn’t made in almost eight years.

 
Having had time to reflect on his career as well as recent performances, the Tasmanian-born Geale believes he will perform better in future fights with a reduced weight cut.

 
“I’m back in the gym and feeling much better,” Geale explained.

 
“It’s hard when you’ve got to cut that much weight. It does take it’s toll but I’m back to feeling good again,”

 
“I had a good rest after that fight – I was thinking about my motivation after that fight – and I think I’ve got that back now. I’m hungry and ready to go again,”

 
“I think at this stage, we’re looking at going up in weight,” Geale acknowledged. “It’s taken it’s toll over the years and I kept telling myself that middleweight was good for me,”

 
“I was making it (middleweight) fine but I was still losing up to ten kilograms every preparation,”

 
“And I guess after losing that extra bit of weight – and probably doing a bit of damage to myself as well – we’ve decided that it’s going to be in my best interest to move up in weight.”

 
“I know I’m going to feel much stronger fighting a weight division above and I’m sure there’s plenty of guys that want to fight me too,”

 
While no official announcement has been made, it appears likely that Geale will mark his super middleweight debut with a fight in Australia.

 
“At this stage, I’ve been speaking to the guys and I think we’ll possibly fight in Australia for the next one,”

 
“We’re not sure of opponents or anything else at this stage – it’s just about getting back in the gym – feeling confident, feeling good and bringing it back together.”

 
 
Photo: Bradley Kanaris/Getty Images