Australian rugby star Quade Cooper had the third fight of his professional boxing career last night and it ended - predictably - in facile victory for the Queensland Reds fly-half, bringing his record to 3-0.
Cooper was taking on a 22-year-old opponent called Jack McInnes on the undercard of Anthony Mundine v Danny Green, in a fight that was roundly criticised due to the clear disparity in physical conditioning between the two. The fight promised to resemble a bad comedy episode unless the unthinkable happened and McInnes somehow landed with a one-off piledriver to humiliate Cooper.
It ended up resulting in the former, with Cooper tip-toeing around at half-pace, almost looking scared of hurting his opponent, until eventually putting everyone out of their misery with about 25 seconds left in the second round (around 6:27 below). As McInnes collapses to the ground, Cooper actually puts his arms out as if to catch him.
Quade Cooper boxing match
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qdSepcqDeSo
It's fair to say that it was one of the easier victories Cooper has achieved, whether on the rugby pitch or in the boxing ring.
Cooper has indicated that he is going to continue trying to juggle his rugby and boxing careers, saying that the Reds support his decision to pursue challenges in the ring. As for McInnes, the loss brings his record to 0-3.
