World junior bantamweight contender Sikho Nqothole accused Ricardo Malajika of being scared of suffering another loss to him after he withdrew from their mandated IBF world title eliminator this week.
The duo was ordered to contest the top spot after fourth-rated Malajika’s first-choice opponent, Kenshiro Teraji, who is listed fifth, rejected the offer.
The IBF went down the pecking order and settled for Mthatha’s Nqothole, who is rated eighth, with his camp managed by Colin Nathan’s No Doubt Management. Malajika, who is handled by Golden Gloves Promotions, was ordered to begin negotiations.
Despite initially confirming his availability, Malajika suddenly pulled out, saying he would pursue other interests.
The IBF has since offered the spot to ninth-rated Englishman Charlie Edwards, a former WBC flyweight champion, to face Nqothole for the mandatory position to challenge the winner between champion Willibaldo Garcia and challenger Andrew Maloney.
I thought [Malajika] would man up and prove that his loss to me was a fluke.
— Sikho Nqothole
While Nqothole is looking forward to the Edwards clash, he admitted he was disappointed by Malajika’s withdrawal, which would have triggered memories of their 2022 bout, which Nqothole won by a unanimous decision.
“To be honest with you, I thought Malajika could withdraw because he knows what happened in our fight before,” he said.
“But after Teraji turned him down and Malajika went on about how he was avoided, I thought maybe he would man up and prove that his loss to me was a fluke.
“I am not sure if he read [a report in Daily Dispatch] and saw how I dissected his boxing style, which I said has not changed since our first fight, and realised there was no way he would beat me.”
Golden Gloves director Nivi Grogor denied Malajika withdrew from the fight because he feared losing to Nqothole again.
“We sat down as a team and decided to explore another option,” she said.
“I have always known Edwards’ style, but when he was mandated to face me, I decided to refresh my memory.
— Sikho Nqothole
“We will send out media releases for that in due course.”
As soon as Edwards was approached to face him and confirmed to be taking the fight, Nqothole, who trains under former South African champion Phumzile Matyhila in Johannesburg, whipped out a tape of the UK fighter to examine his style.
“I have always known Edwards’ style, but when he was mandated to face me, I decided to refresh my memory.
“I can tell you I will be prepared for anything he comes up with and there is no way he will stand in my way to get that title shot.”
Though Nqothole would have fought at home against Malajika, he will need to travel abroad for his clash with Edwards as the Englishman is handled by Nisse and Kalle Sauerland’s MisFits Pro Promotion, while Anthony Fitzpatrick manages him.
Nathan said he considered Edwards’ handlers friends.
“We have known each of them for many years, so it is going to be great working with them for this contest, wherever it ends up,” he said.
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