Maliek “Mayhem” Montgomery and his brothers, Michael Jr. and Mikhail, started boxing at just 12 years old when their father took them to a gym for the first time.
“We were at home playing a boxing video game, actually- Fight Night 2004. [My dad] asked us if we wanted to go to the gym. I came and worked out that first day and I’ve been here ever since,” Maliek Montgomery said.
Now 29 and still fighting and training right here in Macon, Montgomery has earned himself a world renowned reputation for his skill in the ring.
Growing up, Maliek was a multi-sport athlete in middle and high school, participating in wrestling, football, track-and-field, and cross country as well as the new addition of boxing. All three Montgomery brothers started training, and became very active in the amateur boxing scene, managing to garner over 400 wins between the three of them.
Maliek was the first boxer from Macon to win the highly prized Golden Gloves amateur championship twice. He qualified for the Olympics as a USA team alternate back in 2016, and has trained under pound-for-pound great Shawn “Showtime” Porter and his highly respected trainer and father, Kenny Porter.
In the amateurs, Maliek clashed with the boxing stars such as Edgar Berlanga, Ryan Garcia, Gervonte Davis, and Teofimo Lopez, and Devin Haney, to name a few off of his very impressive resume.
Now, he’s an undefeated pro, with an impressive 19-0 record, including 17 knockouts. Maliek has been prolific in his professional conquest of the boxing ring. In September 2021, Montgomery won his 11th contest in a “fight of the year” contender against the very game Aleem Jumakhonov for the vacant WBA Silver Featherweight Championship. Maliek landed well over 300 punches throughout the 10 round slug-fest.
Since then, Maliek has accrued eight more victories, with only one of the fights going the full distance. Recently, Maliek has been making a name for himself as a returning headliner for promotion OTX, having won back-to-back main events at their Atlanta venue in June and August of this year.
His older brother, Michael Jr., is not currently competing, but Mikhail is also an accomplished pro fighter with a record of 8-0. While he and his brothers all played multiple sports, Maliek thinks boxing stuck largely because of his family.
Michael Montgomery Sr., his father, was a successful professional boxer in New York City during his heyday, but as Maliek put it, “The [boxing] purses were a little bit different back then.”
Michael Sr. retired from his fighting career to better provide for his sons, something Maliek doesn’t take lightly. Even now, as a professional at a high level, his “home base” is with his father and brothers in Macon.
He believes he’s able to continue to chase his championship aspirations, “…because of my family. My father, My brothers, the push they give me to be [in the gym] every day… going into a fight, of course I carry all their drive, that ambition- that love that they give me [when I’m] preparing for fights.”
When Maliek isn’t hard at work preparing for his own fights, though, he’s often helping to train the younger boxers at the county-run Macon-Bibb United Boxing Club at Freedom Park gym. Maliek regularly trains and spars with younger amateur fighters in the gym, providing them with the invaluable experience of working with such a high-level boxer.
Maliek, his brothers, and his father have been so dedicated to paying it forward that, earlier this year, Macon-Bibb County officials started the renaming process for the gym’s boxing arena, with the name set to be changed from “Bishop Frank Ray Boxing Arena” to “Frank Ray-Montgomery Brothers Boxing Arena.”
Boxing is truly Maliek’s passion and his lifestyle. “I’m a fanatic when it comes to this boxing- I literally eat, sleep, drink it. [I] wake up in the morning, [and] workout for boxing, then I rest…and get ready for training again… Even if I weren’t being paid to do it, I’d still be doing it today.”
His 20th bout is scheduled for November of this year at OTX 11, with the date, location, and opponent to be announced.
