Hekkie Budler to get heroes' welcome in SA after historic victory in Tokyo

21 May 2018 - 16:14 By Bongani Magasela
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Hekkie Butler from South Africa punches Joey Canoy from Philippines during vacant IBO Light Flyweight title bout between Hekkie Budler and Joey Canoy at Emperors Palace on February 04, 2017 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Hekkie Butler from South Africa punches Joey Canoy from Philippines during vacant IBO Light Flyweight title bout between Hekkie Budler and Joey Canoy at Emperors Palace on February 04, 2017 in Johannesburg, South Africa.
Image: Anton Geyser/Gallo Images

Newly crowned IBF‚ WBA Super and the Ring Magazine junior flyweight champion Hekkie "Hexecutioner" Budler will be given a heroes' welcome when he touches down at OR Tambo International Airport on Tuesday afternoon.

Budler became the first South African to hold two major world crowns simultaneously after he survived a late knockdown to narrowly outpoint Ryoichi Taguchi in Tokyo on Sunday to win the IBF and WBA junior-flyweight titles.

The boxer‚ trainers Colin Nathan and Vusi Mtolo and cut man Bernie Pailman are expected to arrive back in SA at 4.30pm on Tuesday.

"We salute Hekkie‚" said BSA chairman Peter Ngatane is a statement prepared by CEO Tsholofelo Lejaka.

"He walked into the lion’s den and returned with its mane.

"We will surely be there to roll out the red carpet when you touch ground at OR Tambo International Airport.

"Around 6am on a glorious Sunday morning of May 20 2018 boxing history got made.

"The pugilist scripts got rewritten and the fighters’ records retyped.

"The pecking order of boxing’s best got rearranged as the new world king of light flyweight division got coronated."

This victory makes Hekkie the first African to win three world title belts simultaneously.

It also makes him the first South Africa to win the Ring Magazine belt under the current South African Boxing Act of 2001.

The last South African to bring this belt home was the legendary Vic Toweel way back in 1950.

The odds were stacked up against Hekkie because he came into this fight straight from a loss against Milan Melindo in the Philippines.

Budler lost to the Filipino in a fight for the IBF title last September.

Nathan protested with the Championship Committee of the IBF which ruled that Melindo had to defend against Budler.

But Melindo had already committed to facing Taguchi in a unification bout.

The ruling was that the winner would defend against Budler.

Taguchi defeated Melindo in December and in the process inherited the rematch owed to Budler.

Added Ngatane: "Boxing South Africa wishes to congratulate Hekkie and his team for this unparalleled accomplishment.

"What Hekkie has achieved goes way beyond what ordinary words can describe… this is not only victory for Hekkie but victory for the entire boxing movement of South Africa."

Budler is the former IBO and WBA Super mini flyweight and IBO junior flyweight holder.

He has now held six world titles in two weight classes.

His blossoming career began in 2007 under Nathan and successful veteran promoter Rodney Berman.

Credit should go to both Berman and IBO president Ed Levine who always looked after the boxer.

Budler lost the IBO junior flyweight title to Gideon Buthelezi in January 2011 but Berman and Levine gave him a chance to fight the vacant mini flyweight strap which he won eight months later.

When Budler lost the WBA Super mini flyweight title to Byron Rojas in 2016 he also forfeited the IBO belt.

But Berman convinced Levine to give his charge a chance to fight for the vacant IBO junior flyweight belt which Budler won in February last year to gain recognition from other world sanctioning bodies.

Budler won those titles under Golden Gloves at Emperors Palace while the IBF‚ WBA Super and the Ring Magazine belts were staged by Watanabe Promotions at Ota-City Gymnasium in Tokyo.

Taguchi was itching closer to the record of his countryman Yoko "Fierce Eagle" Gushiken who defended his WBA junior flyweight title 13 times.

Taguchi was bidding for the eighth defence of the WBA Super title and the first for the IBF strap.

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