From being selected into the Springboks in June 2018, he emerged as a best Winger of the year and had a meteoric rise on the international front.

At the 2019 Rugby World Cup, South African players were invited to provide photos of their family that would be integrated into the flocked numbers on the back of their jersey.

He attended Jim Mvabasa SS School, King William's Town, in the Eastern Cape of South Africa.

Mapimpi was one of several amateur club players brought into the Border Bulldogs provincial set-up at the start of 2014 after the professional side was declared bankrupt.

[5] He was included in their squad for the 2014 Vodacom Cup competition and made his debut in their opening match against a Sharks XV.

However, the Border Bulldogs lost all six of their matches to finish bottom of the log and qualified to the 2014 Currie Cup First Division.

He finished the match with a personal haul of 24 points in the Border Bulldogs' 29–5 victory to help them overtake the Boland Cavaliers on the Southern Section log.

[16] Mapimpi also scored a try three minutes from the end of the Border Bulldogs' first match of the 2015 Currie Cup qualification tournament, with his side causing an upset by beating Griquas – the team that won the qualification tournament in 2014 to earn a spot in the 2014 Currie Cup Premier Division – 20–13 in a match played in East London.

[17] This gave Mapimpi a super chance to profile himself and his skills, resulting in an opportunity to move to the Sharks, being a more prominent Rugby Union.

In January 2023, he was banned for two weeks after being found guilty of making contact with the eyes of Bordeaux Bègles scrum half Maxime Lucu during the 2022–23 Champions Cup.

That year, 2019, Mapimpi was included in the South African squad for the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan.

He was substituted by his best friend Lukhanyo Am who was called up to join the squad while Mapimpi returned home for surgery and recovery.

Makazole is effectively a two time world champion and one of the greats of the sports, being the most prolific try scorer for the Springboks between 2018 and 2022.