Jason Moloney survives bloody night at Fortitude Music Hall
Jason Moloney secured a unanimous points decision victory over American Andre Donovan on a brutal Thursday night at the Fortitude Music Hall in Fortitude Valley. The local favourite overcame a deep cut sustained in the 10th round to keep his path clear for a return to boxing’s highest level. All three judges scored the fight 97-92 in Moloney’s favour, despite a point deduction for his opponent in the eighth round for holding.
The contest was described as a “bloodbath” by ABC Sport reporter Simon Smale, with the ring canvas left looking like a “macabre Jackson Pollock parody” by the end of the fight. Moloney admitted the fight was harder than anticipated, noting that his opponent was “smothering” him and charging his head in repeatedly.
Wallace and McIntyre add to the carnage
In the co-main event, Conor Wallace faced a grinning Argentine opponent named Walter Sequeira. Wallace, who was using the bout as a “keep-busy contest” after 10 months out of the ring, suffered a bad split in the fourth round from a head clash. Sequeira play-acted the clown throughout the early rounds, grinning and showboating before the violence sharpened both men’s focus.
The blood-letting forced Wallace to work the body aggressively. Sequeira eventually took a knee in the fifth round and uttered “no more” in the sixth, ending the contest. The Ireland-born light heavyweight provided plenty of entertainment, participating in a comical charade that peaked with both men screaming in each other’s faces at the end of the third round.
Rising star Max McIntyre delivered the most bloody performance of the night earlier in the card. The 21-year-old turned his opponent Tej Pratap Singh’s nose into a “horrifying faucet” during their early exchanges. McIntyre, a stylish fighter with fast feet and faster hands, quickly became covered in blood as it flowed freely from Singh’s nose, splattering his white shorts and the front row.
Moloney reflects on a tough contest
Moloney told ABC Sport in the ring that he expected Donovan to drag him into a dogfight. “I thought, if I box him how I know I can, and fight my fight, I can do this comfortably. And I didn’t,” Moloney said. He credited Donovan for being “very hungry” but insisted he must do better at the top level.
The Australian fighter explained that he was forced to hold to stop the constant head clashes. “I wasn’t meaning to hold, but I had to stop his head charging to me, or it was going to be a bloodbath,” he said. Moloney noted they hit heads about 20 times, with the lucky break coming that the worst clash occurred only in the final round.
Despite the violence, the night highlighted the paradox of boxing as an art form. McIntyre’s youthful flourishes and swiftness revealed a “furious dance” that can contain joy, even as blood stained the ring and the fighters. The event at the Fortitude Music Hall served as a visceral reminder of the impact of bludgeoning fists in the sport.
