By Jonty Ralphsmith
Pakenham-based boxer Leroy Mphela remembers his first professional boxing bout in December.
He reminisces intimately and exuberantly as though he is visualising himself back in the ring at Melbourne Pavilion.
He hears his entrance music. Sees the cameras. Feels the adrenaline, the energy of the crowd.
A two time state title winner and national silver medallist in amateurs, his ascent to professional has been rapid.
The referee rings the bell, Mphela looks his opponent in the eyes, breathes and, after a three-year amateur career, he’s right to go under the bright lights. Ready for battle.
Or so he thought.
After a solid start, he was clipped and grounded in the fourth round and that was that. He got up dazed, his opponent capitalised and struck consistently and firmly.
Both Leroy and his coach, Clay Auimatagi conceded his below-par preparation contributed to his shortfalling.
“I’m grateful for the experience,” Mphela said.
“I now know what it’s like to be in there and I know what it’s like the week before.
“I know how to prepare myself for the fight – before, I was going in blind.”
Having seen his development close-up, Auimatagi is confident Mphela will use the loss as a learning experience.
“The guy’s getting better by the month,” Auimatagi said.
“He steps up with every new challenge and the better the opponent, the more he steps up and performs.
“He’s going to get to a very good nationals level with a good training block and from there, we’ll see. He gets more and more disciplined and he’s got it in him to improve.”
Auimatagi is straight talking with 20 years of experience coaching state and national representatives across Australia and New Zealand. Under his tutelage, Mphela is beginning to think about how each action in his everyday life will affect him in the ring.
The words ‘sacrifice leads to success’ are on the walls at Skamma Gym, his training facility; Mphela is learning the value of living a lifestyle conducive to a prosperous career.
To better understand how to optimise his own training, he has just started a personal training course.
Alongside his own training, Mphela is mentoring young boxers at Skamma.
To learn more about how to fuel his body, he is planning on getting formal education in nutrition, and his temptations to satisfy cravings are dwindling as he learns more about diet.
He monitors liquid intake stringently, drinking only water.
Auimatagi used music extensively to instil rhythm into Mphela’s boxing as the coach believed he entered the sport with clumsy movements and posture – his determination to overcome that challenge exemplified his work ethic.
However, knowing that he can’t use music to pump him up when in the ring, Mphela is waning his reliance on it at training.
The commitment is a far cry from the kid who took up mixed martial arts, and then boxing, in 2018, to release his anger.
Having endured personal difficulty, aggression was Mphela’s default as a kid, by admission, and he needed the discipline and physical outlet boxing provides.
“You really find out your strengths and weaknesses when you’re by yourself,” Mphela said.
“Boxing is a lonely sport inside the ring – you really need to pay attention to what you’re going to do in the fight, because you don’t have anyone there by your side so it helps you focus.”
Boxing has taken Mphela on a mental journey.
In the early days, Auimatagi recalls Mphela as timid and quiet in the gym.
Barely a year later, Mphela won the 2019 amateur state light middleweight title.
Mphela had talent, athleticism and heart, but his quick summit from business owner to state champion gave him, by admission, an unhealthy ego.
He rewarded himself for his quick ascent up the boxing ranks by taking several months off; once he returned, he realised the naivety of his mistake.
“I thought I could come back and be as good as I was pre my break – that hindered my progress because I hit a plateau,” Mphela said.
The pandemic also brought its challenges for Mphela, giving him a greater appreciation for his own life.
To support his wife and with his son, Aziah, born in October 2021, he needed to downgrade to a Woolworths phone and find satisfaction and joy through moments in his life, rather than material.
In the absence of luxury, he learned to find beauty in his time with family, gratitude in the basic comforts of life.
“He’s got it in him to balance family life and his boxing, but it’s a challenge,” Auimatagi said, referencing Mphela’s modesty.
Fatherhood, alongside the pandemic’s challenges, resulted in him releasing his ego.
Increased self-awareness, confidence and presence have propelled his improvement.
Most days, he walks the same route but he has become more aware of his surroundings, more observant and alert.
When he walks around his neighbourhood in the dark, he listens closely, vigilant and watchful of rustling and movement, attentive to his environment. Mphela speaks less and is willing to listen more.
His vivid recollection of his professional debut, as he recalls it months later, is further evidence of his gains.
That increased sensory input aligns with an increased presence in the ring – something he concedes that he lacked during his first amateur loss to Jamie Lewis.
“I’ll never forget that name,” Mphela said.
“He had a very good IQ in the ring and he was present. He didn’t have anything else in his head.
“I beat myself up for having too much in my head which only makes things worse – I was in a battle with myself.”
He is now far more willing to push the negative self-talk during training to one side, using his four years of experience to push towards his physical capacity rather than give in to the pressure and adversity.
The knowledge that he has trained adequately boosts his self-esteem: there is no lingering doubt about his preparation knowing he is in peak condition and has followed his coach’s directions.
Confident in his approach to dealing with difficulties, he is willing to endure the peaks and troughs to reach his potential.
“I’m inviting the downs now because they are tests and with each test I level up,“ he said.
“I’m not going to be a good boxer overnight – it takes years and years of training so I know I still have room for growth.“
Balancing fatherhood, work, study and boxing, Mphela does not believe he is psychologically ready for an imminent fight.
Next time, he wants to make sure he really will be right to go. Ready for battle.
“I was supposed to have a fight on March 19 but I decided not to take it because I still feel like I need to grow and train and need to calm my mind and thoughts before I get into the ring – next time I get into the ring it’ll be big for me I think,“ Mphela said.
“I will be more joyful rather than just doing it. That’s why I’m just taking my time at the moment. I’m not putting a timeline on that.”
