By Glynn Evans:
Born: In Okupya, Namibia on the 4th June 1978 (now aged 33). Raised in Oshana region.
Based: Windhoek, Namibia
Nickname: ‘The Hitman.’
Record: 29 fights, 28 wins, 19 stoppage victories
Honours: Ex WBA Pan African lightweight champion, ex WBA InterContinental lightweight champion, ex WBA lightweight champion. 2009 Namibian Sportsman of the Year.
Physical Dimensions: 5ft 8in tall, 72 1/2 in reach, 135lbs
Status: Married (August 2009), one child.
Profession: Inspector in the Namibian Police Force. In 2011 became a national hero when he apprehended and arrested a knife carrying bag snatcher.
Hobbies: Man of faith, enjoys listening to gospel music and watching action movies. Big Arsenal fan! ‘My favourite player is Robin Van Persie and I’d really love to see a game over here if it’s possible,’ he says.
Ring style: Disciplined, educated box-fighter. Quick, good jab, firepower in both hands. ‘I work very, very hard. I can adapt to however the opponent is fighting me,’ he claims.
Back up Team: Managed and coached by ex pro middleweight Nestor ‘Sunshine’ Tobias from the Nestor Sunshine Boxing and Fitness Academy in Katutura. Promoted by Don King.
Amateur career: ‘I used to be a soccer player but, in 2000, our team kept losing. I felt the other players weren’t working hard enough so I decided to find a sport where I could do it all on my own, not get disappointed. So I hooked up with Nestor Tobias. I was already 21 at the time.
As an amateur I had 59 bouts and never lost. I won every tournament. I was a two time Namibian national champion and I won the gold medal at the African Nations Championships in Nigeria.’
Professional career: Turned pro in November 2002 with a second round stoppage of Aaron Vilane at the Windhoek Country Club Resort. ‘They said I fought like Thomas Hearns and, since then, I’ve been known as ‘Hitman’, explains Moses.
In August 2005, Moses captured his first title at the same venue when stopping two-time South African title challenger Simphiwe Joni in six. He successfully defended that belt on two occasions, outscoring Zimbabwe’s Meshack Kondwani over 12 at the Country Club Resort and halting South Africa’s Siviwe Ntshingana in seven in Johannesburg.
In August 2006, ‘The Hitman’ upgraded to WBA InterContinental honours with a unanimous decision over French-based Romanian Mihaita Mutu, a former European lightweight challenger and future WBU light-welter challenger, and a regular visitor to UK shores.
Again, Paulus successfully defended this belt twice, overwhelming 20 year old Georgian Beka Sadjaia in eight and, most commendably, routing Andriy Kudryavtsev, a future European title victim of Manchester’s John Murray, in nine rounds in his native Ukraine.
After breezing through a May 2008 tune-up in Japan, Moses returned to the Land of the Rising Sun in January 2009 to dethrone defending WBA king Yusuki Kobari by unanimous decision in Yokohama. He became Namibia’s second world boxing champion following WBO light-middle and middleweight king Harry Simon.
Six months later, Moses made his only successful defence of the world crown with a near shutout of another Jap, Takehiro Shimada (a one-time WBA superfeather contender), back home at the Windhoek Country Club Resort where he’d debuted almost seven years earlier.
Alas, after a ten month absence from the ring, his 16 month reign as world champion came to an ignoble end when he was badly knocked out by Venezuela’s Miguel Acosta at the Kalahari Sands Hotel in Namibia. His camp cite ‘personal problems’ for the upset reverse.
He has since rebounded with three victories over Latin American opposition, all at the Country Club Resort in Windhoek, where he remains a sell-out draw. He is presently ranked 4th by the WBO and 6th by the WBO.
On the Ricky Burns Fight: Prior to leaving, Moses, his trainer Sunshine Tobias and two sparring partners had a state luncheon with President Hifekepunye Pohamba on February 24th.
He claims to be highly motivated by the chance to become the first Namibian to win world titles with two different organisations. At 33, he knows that defeat will probably terminate his career at world level.
Moses says: ‘In boxing, there are no easy fights. Every match is tough, every match is dangerous but fighting up in Scotland will not present a problem. The crowd was against me many times in South Africa, and also Japan and the Ukraine yet I won every time. Even up in Scotland, a lot of Namibian people from all over Britain have expressed a wish to come and see this fight.
Training has gone very well and my weight is fine. I haven’t seen Ricky Burns fight yet but, according to his record, he must be a very good boxer. It’s sure to be very tough, every fight is. Still, if you want to be the champion, you need to beat the champion.
I’m very confident. I train to win and, if I succeed, I will become a big, big hero back home in Namibia. I’ve beaten better fighters than Ricky Burns before. I’m coming to take his title by knockout!’