Željko Mavrović

Željko Mavrović
Mavrović in 2008
Statistics
Real name	Željko Mavrović
Nickname(s)	Zed Šaka sa Srednjaka
Rated at	Heavyweight
Height	1.91 m (6 ft 3 in)
Nationality	Croatian
Born	17 February 1969 Zagreb, Croatia
Stance	Orthodox
Boxing record
Total fights	28
Wins	27
Wins by KO	22
Losses	1

Željko Mavrović (born 17 February 1969) is a Croatian former professional boxer. In 1998, as an undefeated challenger, he faced Lennox Lewis for the WBC heavyweight title, but lost in what would be his final fight. After retiring from boxing, Mavrović became an entrepreneur.

Background

Mavrović was born in Zagreb, in the neighbourhood Srednjaci (which is the source of his nickname Šaka sa Srednjaka or "Fist from Srednjaci").

Amateur career

As an amateur boxer, Mavrović was the Mediterranean champion in 1991 and Croatian champion in 1991 and 1992. Other Amateur accomplishments were:

• 1988 Olympic Games, Seoul, South Korea (Heavyweight)
  • Lost to Baik Hyun-Man (South Korea) 0–5
• 1989 European Championships, Athens, Greece (Heavyweight)
  • Lost-SD Axel Schulz (Germany)
• 1991 European Championships, Stockholm, Sweden (Heavyweight)
  • Lost-PTS Arnold Vanderlijde (Netherlands)
• 1991 Mediterranean Games, Athens, Greece (Heavyweight): Gold Medal
  • Final Match: Defeated Georgios Stefanopoulos points (Greece)
• 1992 Olympic Games, Barcelona, Spain (Heavyweight)
  • Defeated Mark Hulstrom (Denmark) 8–2
  • Lost to Danell Nicholson (US) 6–9

Professional career

Upon turning professional, he became the boxing champion of Europe (EBU) in 1995 and kept his title in 1996 and 1997 against seven opponents.

In 1998, he went up against Lennox Lewis for the world heavyweight champion title, but lost after twelve rounds on points. Although he was outclassed by Lewis in the fight, his daring performance pulled appreciative comments from boxing insiders. Lewis' manager Frank Maloney said that "Mavrović must have 240lb of steel in his chin" after the fight.^[1] Lewis described the fight as the most awkward win of his career, citing sauna-like conditions in the ring, as well as Mavrović's agility, motivation and preparedness.^[2]

Mavrović never fought again after this bout. In the next years he was a few times scheduled against quality opposition (like for example against Hasim Rahman in 1999 where his late replacement Oleg Maskaev then knocked Rahman out of the ring in a well remembered fight), but he always had to pull out due to injuries and he ultimately had to finish his career due to an undisclosed illness.

In December 2012 Mavrović announced his return to professional boxing. A match with Serbian Cruiserweight boxer Enad Ličina was scheduled for April 2013, but after breaking a rib during training just a few weeks before the scheduled match his return was first delayed^[3] and than canceled.^[4]

Mavrović served as a boxing director for the Croatian Boxing Federation during the 2014 European Youth Boxing Championships in Zagreb. He was quoted after the incident where Croatian boxer Vido Loncar assaulted and seriously injured a referee after a loss, excusing Loncar with the argument "I believe that he is not a butcher or as bad as this act makes him look. This was part of his excessive ambition in that moment".^[5] Loncar was subsequently banned from boxing for life.

Honors

His Golden Glove remains the biggest trophy in the history of Croatian heavyweight boxing, and he was named the Croatian sportsperson of the year twice. He was also distinctive for his Mohawk hairstyle, which led to a later nickname Irokez (Croatian for Iroquois).

Professional boxing record

Outside the Ring

After retirement he went into agricultural business. He opened "Eko-centar Mavrović" in Sloboština near Požega where he produces his own line of eco-friendly food.^[6] After initial success his business fell into financial problems in the early 2010s.

References

1. Boxing: Lewis less than a knockout in US
2. Lennox Lewis: Consummate Cool
3. "Mavrović u Nu2: Puklo mi je rebro, odgađam povratak!" (in Croatian). tportal. 2013-04-07. Retrieved 2013-06-01.
4. "ISPOVIJEST ŽELJKA MAVROVIĆA ‘Nisam samoubojica! Odustajem. Imam ženu i djecu!’" (in Croatian). Jutarnji list. 2013-10-06. Retrieved 2013-10-11.
5. "Boxer banned after brutal attack on referee". Sky Sports. 2014-10-23. Retrieved 2014-10-25.
6. Eko-Mavrović homepage

External links

• Professional boxing record for Željko Mavrović from BoxRec
• Željko Mavrović at the Internet Movie Database
• Nedjeljom u dva – Željko Mavrović (07.04.2013)