Australian sport is mourning the loss of one of its great fighters, with boxing legend Tony Mundine dying at the age of 75.

The trailblazing Indigenous sportsman, who rose from humble beginnings in the tiny northern NSW community of Baryulgil to fight for a world title, leaves behind a remarkable legacy both inside and outside the ring.

His death was confirmed by his son, former world champion Anthony Mundine, in an emotional social media post.

“I don’t know what to say, I’m broken,” Anthony wrote.

“Dad I love you man, may Allah bless your soul.”

Anthony said he was making his way home to farewell his father, thanking him for the support and strength he had shown throughout his life.

“Gonna miss you Tonza, there’s only one Tony Mundine,” he wrote.

Tony Mundine was one of the finest Australian boxers of his generation and remains the only Australian fighter to have competed professionally across four weight divisions.

During a celebrated career he claimed Australian titles at middleweight, light-heavyweight, cruiserweight and heavyweight, establishing a reputation for speed, power and toughness.

But his journey to the top of Australian boxing was perhaps even more remarkable than the titles themselves.

Born in Baryulgil, Mundine began fighting in tent boxing shows as a teenager before embarking on a professional career that would eventually take him around the world.

The biggest night came in October 1974, when Mundine challenged legendary Argentine champion Carlos Monzon for the world middleweight title.

Mundine was stopped in the seventh round, but later reflected on the extraordinary journey that had carried a boy from Baryulgil onto boxing’s world stage.

“I was just a little chocolate boy from Baryulgil, and here I was travelling the world, you know,” he once said.

His influence extended well beyond his own career.

Mundine retired from professional boxing in 1984 and two years later was awarded the Medal of the Order of Australia for his services to sport and Aboriginal youth.

His legacy also continued through his family, most famously through Anthony, who followed his father into boxing after first playing professional rugby league and went on to become a multiple world champion.

A third generation has since stepped into the ring, with Tony’s grandson Rahim Mundine pursuing his own professional boxing career.

Tributes began flowing soon after news of Mundine’s death emerged.

Former world champion Danny Green, who shared one of Australian boxing’s great rivalries with Anthony Mundine, remembered Tony as a man he had admired long before becoming part of the same boxing world.

Green described Mundine as a “gentleman I had a tonne of respect for”, saying he had grown up watching him fight on television and had drawn inspiration from his career.

Former world champion Billy Dib also paid tribute, describing Mundine as one of Australia’s greatest fighters and remembering him as a “beautiful human being” who had always treated him with kindness and respect.

For generations of Australian boxing fans, however, Tony Mundine will be remembered simply as one of the country’s originals – a fighter who came from almost nowhere, fought almost everyone and opened doors for those who followed.

For Anthony Mundine, he was something much simpler and far more important: Dad.

And, as his devastated son wrote in farewell, there was only one Tony Mundine.

Images: Facebook