Michael Katsidis edges Rodynie Rafol, in depth post-fight interview
A forgettable week for Michael Katsidis ended on a positive note, with the former two-time WBO interim titleholder edging lively underdog Rodynie Rafol over six fast-paced rounds.
Faced with the loss of his dear friend Braydon Smith only days earlier, Katsidis, 34, survived an uncharacteristic slow start to outpoint his Filipino counterpart Rodel, 28, who came close to scoring a remarkable upset at the Melbourne Pavilion.
Perhaps not used to fighting over a shorter duration or maybe it was due to Rodel (now 12-7-2, 5 KOs) forcing Katsidis to lead, but the Australian (now 31-7, 24 KOs) walked onto several hard shots in the opening two rounds and by the end of the second round, was marked up quite heavily.
Because of the closely fought nature of almost every round, there were elements of the fight that were legitimately difficult to score.
“I wasn’t out there tonight to prove something to myself, I was out there to prove that I can box and do things a bit differently,” said Katsidis in an exclusive post-fight interview with Aus-Boxing. “That was a stepping stone for me,”
“I think for a boxing enthusiast, that’s a very pleasing thing to see that a boxer can change and adapt. I believe Michael Katsidis has been well overdue for that,”
“I need to come on more not in an aggressive way, but more of a switched on technical way. Not just slugging away as I’ve previously done.”
Rodel was landing the cleaner blows, but it was Katsidis that was ultimately engaging and forced the Filipino to trade. The Filipino, who was last seen dropping a decision to Australian lightweight champion George Kambosos Jr, did everything he could to make Katsidis uncomfortable, making him miss on a regular basis.
With his confidence at an all-time high, Rodel appeared to take his foot off the gas, allowing Katsidis to rally home in the closing stages of the third, fourth and fifth rounds, which in the end lead the recently re-located Melbournian to victory.
At the fights conclusion, the judges favoured Katsidis by wider than expected margins of 59-55 and 58-56 twice.
“The first thing that’s been on my mind is just to get on that plane and go to the funeral and say goodbye to my brother Braydon Smith,” Katsidis said. “This opportunity came up and you know, every time I’ve got an important fight in my life it’s seems a brother of mine seems to die. It’s hard.”
“I believe that God puts these tests in front of those that dare to be great. My little mate was there with me tonight and Braydon was saying to me, “Box safe Mick, you can do this smart and you can do this different”, I heard him,”
“I said goodbye to him the other night,” Katsidis continued. “I jumped on a plane up to Queensland and was there when they turned the machine off and I’ll jump back on a plane to head back up there.”
“All I can think about doing is going up and saying goodbye to my good mate for once and for all.”
Having fought some of the biggest names in the lightweight division for the best part of a near decade, a more mature Katsidis appears to understand adversity. He speaks with a composure that up until recently, had no been seen in the celebrated spartan warrior.
It’s clear that his perspective on both life, career and boxing in general has shifted. While his way of coping with struggle is unique in itself, the way that he now articulates that is something that he finds motivation from.
“Everyone reacts to different things in life differently. For me I believe one pain succumbs the other. For me, it’s to train harder, it’s built in me from when Brendon Smith and I were in Vegas and my brother passed away. I trained on the same day that he died,”
“There is nothing wrong with that. Everyone deals with things differently. This time I got to fight, I won the fight and now I get to say goodbye to Braydon.”
“I just want to say that I’m a better person for having known the Smith family and Braydon Smith.”
As for his immediate future as a professional prizefighter, Katsidis didn’t appear to have a set destination or fixture for future fights. Although one thing is certain, Katsidis’ style will change with age and he will continue to alter his fighting style.
When pressed for his thoughts on returning to the pinnacle of the division, Katsidis’ answer was an honest one.
“I’m faced with this question all the time, it’s a strange occupation to be in boxing and fighting,” continued Katsidis. “Not many can do it – if I’m gonna do it – I’m gonna do it safely. But it’s like me saying to others where are you gonna go with your career?”
“This is my job, I love doing what I do. People say “Oh, he just does it because the money’s good. He does it for the money.” Well of course I do it for the money, give me a break. But I just love doing it.”
“Can I become a contender? Well, maybe I can duck to the left and duck to the right and catch him with a good punch this time and look at things differently.”
“You don’t know what tomorrow is going to bring. Like I’ve said, one day Braydon Smith was living a very healthy life, he never drank, he was a fourth year law student and he just drops dead.”
“So you just don’t know what tomorrows going to bring. I could pick up a shot at a world title contender where he might miss and I might knock him out. It might go the other way around. This is life.”
“I think heart plays a very big part in boxing. But if there is anything that I learnt from Braydon, I need to turn my heart into brains and maybe start from the get go,” said Katsidis in closing. “In my last fight I stepped out, I rushed him and I did things wrong and I got caught. I’m not going to make that same mistake,”
“What have I got to prove? Why do I have to run out there like a bull at a gate? They can come to me.”
“For years, they have been watching me coming at them and they have just been countering me,”
“I’m not doing that anymore, I’m playing my game. If they think they can come over here and beat Michael Katsidis, well come over and beat me,”
“Come over to my backyard.”
Photo: Damian Brierty/Visual Delight
