The unflappable Tony Nyangiwe will be the third man in the ring when Kevin “Two Guns” Lerena fights Youri Kayembre Kalenga for the vacant IBO cruiserweight championship next month.
East London IBO fight supervisor Andile Matika confirmed the appointment of Sowetan Nyangiwe as fight referee.
Matika said the three judges would be Eddie Pappoe, of Ghana, who recently officiated at the big cruiserweight bout between Marco Huck and Mairis Briedis, Patrick Mukondiwa, of Zimbabwe, and Robert Hoyle, of the US.
In Nyangiwe, the IBO has appointed an experienced referee who will not be overawed by the occasion.
He has officiated at many world-title fights and local tournaments.
Nyangiwe’s recent appointments have involved small fighters such as IBO junior flyweight holder Hekkie “Hexecutioner ” Budler, IBO flyweight champion Moruti “Baby Face” Mthalane and IBO mini-flyweight title-holder Simpiwe “Chain Reaction” Khonco.
But he will be stepping up, so to speak, for the muscular pairing of Lerena and Kalenga.
The fight between the left-handed Lerena and the 29-year-old France-based Congolese, who has held the WBA belt as interim champion, will headline a Golden Gloves tournament staged by Rodney Berman at Emperors Palace in Kempton Park, on the East Rand, on September 9.
The 25-year-old Lerena — a former South African and WBA Pan African cruiserweight title-holder — will have a lot to fight for: a loss will cost him dearly in rating scores by the other boxing bodies.
In fact, he might lose ratings for stepping into the ring because some world boxing bodies do not recognise the IBO.
Lerena is rated 6th by the WBC, 11th by the WBA and the IBF has recognised his hard work and consistency with a No 6 spot. The WBO has him in the No 2 position.
Just R20 for the first month. Support independent journalism by subscribing to our digital news package. 