He was in his prime during the 1980s and is best remembered for his 1985 fight against Lester Ellis, which received nationwide television coverage in Australia.

[citation needed] Michael won the IBF super featherweight title on 12 July 1985 over Lester Ellis.

He made his first defense three months later on 19 October 1985 with a 4th-round TKO win over Korean Jin-Shik Choi at the Darwin Oval in the Northern Territory.

Jin-Shik Choi's only loss going into the fight was to Rod Sequenan (Ellis' first defense), two years earlier by 12th-round knockout.

[1] Today, Michael is a boxing analyst in the media and appears on SEN 1116 as well as writing for the Herald Sun.