Andrew Moloney\u2019s decades of hard knocks and significant sacrifice have paid off after the Australian challenger won a 12-round war to claim the IBF super flyweight world title in Japan.<\/p>\n
The 35-year-old mandatory opponent knocked back almost $350,000 to step aside and instead take on Mexican champion Willibaldo Garcia, collecting barely a fifth of that sum for the chance to claim the belt.<\/p>\n
Moloney had sensationally quit the sport two years ago after a controversial loss in Perth but reversed his call and, after two bounce back wins, was rewarded with a majority decision (115-113, 114-114, 115-113) in Aichi.<\/p>\n
Know the news with the 7NEWS app: Download today Arrow<\/a><\/p>\n The former Commonwealth Games champion first fought as an amateur in 2008 and turned professional in 2014.<\/p>\n \u201cI am the happiest man in the world,\u201d Moloney said in the ring after joining cruiserweight Jai Opetaia as the country\u2019s only current male world boxing champions.<\/p>\n \u201cThere is not one person in the world happier than I am now.<\/p>\n \u201cI have given everything in this sport for 20 years. There was no way I could leave this ring without winning this world title.\u201d<\/p>\n An accidental head clash caused a cut over Moloney\u2019s left eye in the second round but he stayed patient and busy, targeting the Mexican\u2019s body and maturely avoiding the traps set by the free-swinging champion.<\/p>\n Moloney had slept at his trainer\u2019s gym for the month leading up to his fight, away from family, friends and his business in an attempt to remove all distractions.<\/p>\n He described the preparation as \u201cperfect\u201d and the sacrifices that included spending more than a month in Mexico last year for a fight that never happened and the controversial loss of his first world title strap to Josh Franco six years ago.<\/p>\n With twin brother Jason, himself a former bantamweight world champion, still in the mix for a return to the throne, the dream for both to hold title belts at the same time remains alive.<\/p>\n