The high road or the low road?
This is the scenario both Kevin Lerena and Ryno Liebenberg must consider in the weeks to come.
Both have vital fights to come with Lerena meeting Micki Nielsen for the Super Four cruiserweight title on October 22 and Ryno Liebenberg challenging WBA intercontinental light-heavyweight champion Enrico Koelling on October 1.
If one or the other wins, they will be pushed in different directions. If both prevail, promoter Rodney Berman says that they will feature in a local double-header next February.
However, if both happen to lose, Berman said he would be “very interested” in matching them in a SA super-bout in 2017.
“It’s not something I want to speculate on, but seeing as you asked the question, yes, that fight would interest me and many boxing fans,” said Berman. “For now, though, I’m expecting both to put up top performances. Both fights are difficult – and winnable!”
Now that the subject has been broached, it is worth exploring, albeit as a “phantom fight” for now. Liebenberg is keen to fight whoever is put in front of him and is said to be hot on the idea of challenging Lerena, notwithstanding the small difference in weight.
Lerena has never backed down from a local challenge and most recently had an exciting pair of bouts against Johnny Muller that demonstrated his ability to adapt.
Golden Gloves would presumably put up a fat purse and the pair’s ability to self-market would probably propel the fight into the realm of a major local affair.
Looking ahead, Berman is encouraged by the possibilities of a Lerena win over Nielsen. Given the Dane’s world ranking, Lerena could find himself in the unlikely position of being ranked higher than both stablemate Thabiso Mchunu and former title challenger Junior Makabu.
But first he needs to win.
