JOB SATISFACTION

"I really enjoy fighting," confesses the ever-obliging 23-year-old Boxing Writers' Young Fighter of the Year, a bespectacled 6ft 4ins stringbean who looks better suited to the university lecture theatre than the ring.

"I may come across as laid back but you need to keep well clear of me in the week before a fight, "he said. "I isolate myself at my mother's, watching tapes, playing computer games and running the fight through my head all the time.

 "Several people have commented on how well I speak in front of the cameras but, honestly, I don't like all the fuss. I just love to fight. If the public only saw me on fight night, I'd be very happy. "If I didn't fight in the ring, I'd probably do it in town somewhere. I never back down because I've always known I could handle myself if the time comes.

"From the age of 14, I've been sparring grown men and I broke a few ribs. I was a right nasty little bastard. "This mindset, coupled with the accuracy that all of the sport's elite hitters enjoy, has confirmed the Swansea puncher as probably the most clinical one-shot merchant on the current British circuit. A former amateur ace,

"Big Mac" has needed just 38 rounds to record 16 wins since turning pro as a gangly 19-year-old in October 1999. And, since lifting the WBU crown last June, three very "live" opponents have been left counting birdies in less than 131/2 minutes combined. Promoter Frank Warren, a tad prematurely one feels, has begun to tout the Welsh-Italian as the hardest puncher, pound for pound, in world boxing. "It first dawned that I might possess power beyond the norm at 13, when I knocked a boy from Manchester spark cold in 101/2 seconds in the British Schools quarter-finals at Newport, "recalls the father of three, who is trained by Charlie Pearson.

"In my first senior bout, at 17, I boxed [future pro] Leighton Morgan, who had 15 straight wins, 14 stoppages. I put him out, face first, for 10 minutes with a left hook. They said it was a lucky punch and demanded a return in the championships - same round, same spot on the floor, but a right hand this time - out for 15 minutes!

"His equalisers are delivered from either barrel and with sizzling speed. In June, Hackney's Bruce Scott was struck senseless with a left hook in the fourth of their vacant WBU bash, while subsequent challengers Andrei Kiarsten (right uppercut) and South African champ Earl Morais (right cross) were both chilled to the bone before the first round had passed. Like so many pedigree punchers, doubts linger over whether Maccarinelli absorbs punishment as adeptly as he dispenses it.

Against Scott, he rose from the dead himself, after a leaping left hook bounced him off the mat and left him on quaking legs, with less than a minute on the clock. "I went in freezing, "he said. "Charlie was also looking after [Commonwealth Games champion] Jamie Arthur on that bill and, after bandaging one of my hands up, had to go out with Jamie. By the time he'd returned to bandage the second, I had no time for pads, no warm-up. "The shot caught me on the back of the ear.

I jumped up far too quickly and did stagger back. But I had my mind with me straight away. When the ref said to continue, I never looked to grab or go on the back foot. I knew my head was clear. "Twenty seconds later, Bruce landed flush with a right hand that was better than the one he dropped me with. Yet I took it.

"Through nervousness, my defence had been a bit leaky but, by the second round, I felt I had the fight under control. Bruce is very strong but, once I settled down, he couldn't move me back. I can bench press 125 kilos no problem and I think my strength shocked him as much as my power. "I knew it was just a matter of when I hit him with the right hand or left hook. "While the speed of Maccarinelli's rise to this level might amaze most observers, his boxing-daft family are simply puzzled as to why it took so long.

"My dad [a decent amateur in the Italian militia before leaving Brescia for the Welsh coalmines] ran the Bonymaen amateur gym, and an elder brother Valo [Valentino] had been a pro welter in the 80s. Boxing was all we ever talked about at home and it drove my mother nuts,"said the youngest of seven. "I vividly remember watching Valo sparring at dad's gym when I was no more than two or three, and I'd charge around annoying fighters like Eric George [a decent pro flyweight] and Nigel Page [who once faced Barry McGuigan in an amateur international].

"For me, boxing was not a choice. My father was so adamant that, if I didn't train, I didn't get my pocket money at the end of the week. "Dad started to train me proper between the ages of eight and nine and he was a very tough taskmaster. If anything went wrong at the gym, I always copped the blame.

He'd force me to run before school and once made me train on Xmas Day because I had championships coming up. "As young as 12, to toughen me up, he'd put five 12- or 13-stone boys in the ring against me at the same time. I soon learned to keep nice and tight. "Of course, I'm grateful to him now. "Debuting aged 10, Maccarinelli twice won British junior titles while amassing a 45Ð3 amateur slate but his senior career was blighted by the petty feuding so common in certain areas of the amateur game. Suddenly ineligible for championship and international consideration, he fled to the pros, aged 19, before any of his goals were realised. "Obviously, I had aspirations to box at the major international tournaments,

"said Maccarinelli, who stopped all 11 senior opponents he faced. "I received many calls from clubs asking me to join them but it wouldn't have been fair to desert my father. I weren't getting fights so I was forced to gain experience the hard way [as a pro]."Having shifted in the region of 400 tickets for his opening two pro showings, he headlined at the Swansea Leisure Centre against Nigel Rafferty. It was a 1,400 sell-out, attracting delayed coverage on BBC Wales. Maccarinelli won in three. But, for all his immense potential, Maccarinelli was still only a teenage apprentice and the project took a very heavy bump when he went in against decent Lincoln southpaw Lee Swaby.

Before a live BBC Wales TV audience, the local pride was stopped in three. "Personally, I don't consider the Swaby match was overambitious, because I was winning hands down until I got caught, "he claimed. "I remember the shot that caught me, and even remember falling but my neck snapped back [he claps loudly for effect] on to the canvas. That momentarily blacked me out. Though I was up at seven, the ref was right to stop it.

"I take nothing away from Lee; he caught me fair and it was entirely my fault. In fact, I thank the man because he gave me the kick up the arse I needed. I was training but not living the life. "Because of all the pressure, I'd grown disillusioned with the sport and didn't want to be in the ring. I was more concerned about what I was wearing to go out with the boys after the fight. "But it never made me doubt my chin. I'd been hit flush by 18st men in sparring without so much as buckling.

I could either pack it in as a failed pretty boy or get back in the gym to do the business. "With no more BBC coverage, he initially suffered a crisis of confidence and readily concedes he'd become gunshy when heavyweight Chris Woollas extended him the full four rounds on his return seven months later. But Sports Network identified sufficient raw potential to invest in him and, just three years after the Swaby ordeal navigated a path to the WBU title. It is now imperative that the promoters proceed with caution while the big fella acclimatises to championship distance as he is still to venture beyond round four. Though Mac appears to leave nothing to chance in the gymnasium and can call upon the considerable expertise of trainer Pearson to cajole him through when the tough times inevitably arrive, there is no substitute for performing the deed without headguard, against top-drawer opposition in an energy-sapping live environment.

"I honestly couldn't care less if I don't go beyond four rounds for my next 20 fights, "claims the champ, who barely touches 14st with a good meal inside him, and has no immediate plans to crash the heavyweight division. "What I do know is that I always train to do 12 hard rounds and, when the time does come, I'll be 100% ready. "Before the Scott fight, at [Eugene] Maloney's Fight Factory, I comfortably did the full 12 four times, against three different sparring partners, all very strong boys. "Last fight, I did 12 rounds three days running against Scot Gammer [former Four Nations super heavy king] and a 17st amateur. Both lent on me and tried hitting me with their hardest shots. "It possibly will be more difficult in a fight situation but I'll do it.

"Nevertheless, he rejects the idea of being pitched in a non-title affair against an unthreatening-yet-durable heavyweight journeyman, which might allow him to accrue experience of how to pace a fight over eight or 10 rounds. "What would hitting a moving punchbag prove? "he asked. "No, I enjoy defending my belt and pitching my skills against the top boys at my own weight. "When they do find someone who can take me a few rounds, you'll see my boxing [skills] coming out. I've always been able to work people out and I'm a good shot picker, as I showed against Morais. "People haven't really seen my toughness. I may not be chiselled but I'm pretty strong and, if you touch my stomach, it's very, very solid. A lot of bangers don't want to know when they get hurt themselves, and a lesser boy may have stayed on the floor against Scott but I proved I don't shy away.

"The Principality's brightest prospect is due to kickstart his 2004 campaign with a third defence, against West Ham veteran Garry Delaney, the former Commonwealth light-heavy king, beneath Joe Calzaghe's mandatory WBO super middle spat at Cardiff Ice Rink on 21 February (see page 47 of this issue). "I never make predictions but I know I'm ready for Delaney and, if he intends to beat me, he'd better be prepared for war! I don't come to mess about, "warned Maccarinelli, who desperately covets a chance to showcase his wares before the good folk of Swansea. "By the end of 2004, I 100% expect to be fighting genuine world class. A fight between myself and [WBC counterpart] Wayne Braithwaite would be quite exciting but my ultimate aim is Johnny Nelson.

"Since James Toney moved up to heavy, I'd say Johnny's the best around. "If he only wants one more fight before retirement, I hope it's with me because he's so confident, I think he'd take me lightly and I'd have a shock in store. Whatever he brings, I'll supply the counters. "With Britain's world amateur medallist David Haye (featured on pages 34-37 of this issue) also generating rave reviews, the sport's perennial bastard division is suddenly full of verve. "At the moment Haye's a BBC boy and I'm a Sky Sports boy but, 18 months to two years down the line, it'll be massive, "he acknowledged. "While David's looked sharp against the boys he's fighting, he's also shown he can get caught by a little light-heavyweight [Lolenga Mock]. He showed heart by getting off the floor - very unsteadily may I add! I'd fancy my chances. "You're right, it would generate a lot of money but, for me, it's always, always been about the glory. I intend becoming undisputed champion and leaving my legacy. "Even if I won £10 million on the lottery this weekend, I'd still be out running on Monday morning. "A feature on Britain's other heavy-hitting cruiser prospcet, David Haye, appears in the February issue