Australia’s Jason Moloney has revealed he and twin brother Andrew may eventually follow the Tszyu boys and stop fighting on the same Top Rank cards – but only if he earns a spectacular world title KO this Sunday.
After finally realising his championship dream in 2023, Moloney is now readying to defend WBO bantamweight gold in Sunday’s hyped showdown with American Saul Sanchez in Quebec City, Canada.
Speaking from inside camp this week, Moloney talked of his eagerness to earn a “statement KO” against Sanchez and start the process of proving himself the world’s new bantamweight king following the departure of Japanese megastar Naoya Inoue.
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Moloney’s desire to take the outcome from the judges’ hands also stems partly, he said, from his title win last May coming in a fashion controversial enough for ESPN commentator Tim Bradley to exclaim at least one ringside official had “tried to rob” the Aussie.
Elsewhere, the 32-year-old champ also responded to Fox Sports Australia’s revelation this week that US promoter Bob Arum wants he and George Kambosos to co-headline a blockbuster card Down Under in April or May, saying: “That makes complete sense”.
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Apart from being the first defence of his WBO strap, Sunday’s bout also represents the first time in years that Moloney has not fought either on the same card as his boxing brother, or within days of Andrew also fighting in the States.
Only recently, Tszyu brothers Tim and Nikita revealed that, where possible, they would no longer fight on the same cards together given the stress it put on fight night, and camp, for both themselves and trainer Igor Goloubev.
So what chance the Moloney twins, who are also both trained by the same coach, Angelo Hyder, will also follow suit?
Asked how this camp has been different without his twin brother, who arrives in Canada this week on January 10, their birthday, Moloney conceded it had been “different, but nice in many ways”.
“Nearly every training camp it’s always both of us, and it is a lot to juggle,” he started.
“Maybe more so for Angelo to concentrate on two different fighters, two different opponents, two different strategies.
“But this camp, every session has been about me, every meal is about me, everything revolves around me.
“It’s definitely been something I’ve never experienced but, yeah, something I’ve enjoyed and I feel has added to my focus.
“Naturally as a brother, I do think about Andrew’s fights, his performance, how he’s training and sparring, what he can do better.
“Whereas this time I’ve just been focused on myself.
“I feel like it’s definitely helped.”
But as for it continuing throughout 2024?
“If it’s the best performance of my career this weekend,” Moloney grinned, “then maybe I’ll tell Andrew to get his own shows.
“But it’s not something I’ve felt has been an issue.
“If I thought it was an issue, you’d look at making a change.
“Although there are times where it can be a little distracting, being on the same show together, it’s not as if it’s ever tarnished our performances.
“We’ve always been able to focus when needed, and get the job done when we’ve fought on the same shows.
“So, no, it’s not something we’ll force.
“But who knows? We’ll see what happens.
“Things may naturally shift with some shows moving forward, we’ll wait and see.
“But I’m definitely looking forward to this weekend … being about me, getting the job done, and then being able to celebrate.”
Moloney admitted, however, that at times things had also felt “a bit lonely” without his twin there.
“Especially the running sessions,” he said. “Not having someone to push me, someone on my tail trying to catch me.
“We’re competitive so those sessions are always fun, where you can get that competition between each other.
“But I also don’t need that.
“Because I’m so driven myself, I don’t need someone to push me in the gym. If anything, I generally need someone to hold me back.”
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Moloney knows a statement win this weekend will almost certainly push him straight into another big title fight on homesoil, with Arum having already discussed the idea of having he and Kambosos co-headline in either April or May.
With ‘Ferocious’ currently finalising an IBF lightweight title showdown with Vasiliy Lomachenko, Moloney said it would make “complete sense” for him to also appear on that card.
“I want an active year and timeframe wise that’s perfect,” he said.
“Win in January and then another big, big fight in April or May.
“That makes complete sense.
“And given I’m a Top Rank fighter, it makes sense for them too.
“But the focus right now is that this is a very impressive win.
“Because that’s what is needed to get myself on a card like that.
“They want great fights on that card and that’s what I want to be involved in.
“A good win here and hopefully a unification fight in April or May in Australia.”
Sunday’s bout is the first for Moloney since winning the world title against Vincent Astrolabio last May.
Despite fracturing his hand in the fourth round, a gutsy Moloney fought beautifully through eight more to eventually earn what boxing great Andre Ward, in commentary, described as a “shutout performance”.
While two judges scored it for the Aussie 116-112 and 115-113, a third declared the bout a draw 114-114 – which was subsequently howled down by both Ward and Bradley.
Speaking on the eve of his first title defence, Moloney admitted his desire to go earn a statement KO this Sunday is partly being fuelled by memories of the 114-114 card — and history that has seen both he and twin brother Andrew on the receiving end of some contentious decision losses.
Back in 2020, Andrew Moloney was so badly robbed in a world title fight against Joshua Franco – which was ruled a ‘No Contest’ – he received support online from the likes of Joe Rogan, Daniel Cormier, LL Cool J, Rosie Perez, even Dame Helen Mirren.
Asked if the drawn card on last year’s world title win was still in the back of his mind, Jason Moloney said: “Definitely, mate.
“It’s always hard when you go to the scorecards and you’re on foreign soil.
“You never really trust ‘em.
“I felt like the last fight, I was dominant – and there was still a 114-114 scorecard.
“So the goal in this fight, and moving forward, is to make it convincing.
“And the best way to do that is by knockout.
“I’m due for one … and I feel like one is coming this weekend.”