Introduction
Willis Pele "The Hitman" Meehan (born 11 September 1995) is an Australian professional boxer. He previously played professional rugby league for the Sydney Roosters in the National Rugby League. He played at second-row, prop and lock. He has been compared to good friend and another rugby league-boxer and former teammate Sonny Bill Williams.
Background
Born in Auckland, New Zealand, Meehan moved to New South Wales, Australia, at a young age and played his junior football for the West Ryde Aliens and Wyong Roos before being signed by the Sydney Roosters.
Playing career
In 2013 and 2014, Meehan played for the Sydney Roosters' NYC team. In 2013, he played for the Australian Schoolboys. In Round 14 of the 2014 NRL season, Meehan made his NRL debut for the Roosters against the Newcastle Knights. On 2 September 2014, he was named at lock in the 2014 NYC Team of the Year. In 2015, Meehan was stood down by the Roosters after being charged with robbery in company and assault occasioning actual bodily harm. He was sacked by the club in July 2015.
Boxing
As a 17-year-old, Meehan won the Australian super-heavyweight boxing title and hoped to fight at the Commonwealth Games, narrowly missing out. In 2016, he hopes to fight at the 2016 Summer Olympics.
On 31 January 2015, Meehan fought on the undercard of the Sonny Bill Williams v Chauncy Welliver bout.
On 15 November 2015, Meehan defeated Leamy Tato; however, the main event saw Meehan's father defeated by Joseph Parker.
Professional boxing record
| 8 fights | 8 wins | 0 losses |
| By knockout | 7 | 0 |
| By decision | 1 | 0 |
| No. | Result | Record | Opponent | Type | Round, time | Date | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 | Win | 8–0 | Julián Esteban Ruiz | KO | 1 (6), 0:44 | 1 Mar 2019 | The Melbourne Pavilion, Melbourne, Australia | |
| 7 | Win | 7–0 | Richard Nemeth | TKO | 1 (6), 1:36 | 17 Nov 2018 | The Melbourne Pavilion, Melbourne, Australia | |
| 6 | Win | 6–0 | Jonasa Kavika | KO | 2 (8), 2:13 | 6 Jul 2018 | Roma Function Centre, Sydney, Australia | Won vacant WBF (Foundation) Australasian heavyweight title |
| 5 | Win | 5–0 | Riki Barclay | TKO | 1 (6), 1:02 | 27 Apr 2016 | Convention & Exhibition Centre, Brisbane, Australia | |
| 4 | Win | 4–0 | Leamy Lakopo Tato | TKO | 2 (4), 0:30 | 15 Oct 2015 | The Trusts Arena, Auckland, New Zealand | |
| 3 | Win | 3–0 | Freddie Miller | TKO | 2 (4), 2:43 | 31 Jan 2015 | Allphones Arena, Sydney, Australia | |
| 2 | Win | 2–0 | Alofa Solitua | KO | 1 (4), 1:28 | 3 Dec 2014 | Hordern Pavilion, Sydney, Australia | |
| 1 | Win | 1–0 | Will Quarrie | UD | 4 | 22 Nov 2014 | North Shore Events Centre, Auckland, New Zealand |
Personal life
Meehan is the son of professional boxer, Kali Meehan. He converted to Islam in 2015.
In April 2015, Meehan was charged with headbutting a man and stealing his watch near The Star, Sydney. However, he was not convicted after his robbery in company charge was thrown out. Meehan later revealed he had been working, while playing for the Roosters, as a stand-over man to settle debts for hardened criminals.