Boxers from as far afield as Limpopo, Cape Town and KwaZulu-Natal will converge on Emperors Palace on March 2 for a rare gathering of aspirants, all eager to catch the eye and fire up their careers.
Golden Gloves has put together an eight-bout development show scheduled to take place less than 24 hours after the “Palace Pandemonium” extravaganza, headlined by the IBO world flyweight bout between Ricardo Malajika and Jackson Chauke.
Forty rounds of boxing have been scheduled for the Sunday, although it is highly unlikely that all will be required given the frantic nature of four and six rounders where the margins are so tiny. Besides, each of the fighters will have one thing uppermost in their minds: the need to impress Golden Gloves boss Rodney Berman, who is always on the lookout for special talent. The tournament thus presents a gilt-edged opportunity to gain his nod of approval, perhaps even a long-term contract.
Three of the boxers on the bill have already caught his eye, chiefly unbeaten super middleweight Dylan Prosser, who fights Morgan Hunter, plus bantamweight Charlton Malajika, who is matched tough against Gcina Makhoba at bantamweight, and heavyweight Juan Alberts, who is likely to be tested by Anton Gilmore protege Gilly Dickenson.
Interestingly, Pieter Breytenbach, who pushed Alberts hard last time out, losing narrowly, has been brought back again on the basis of his stirring performance. This time he will be at cruiserweight, where he is likely to be more comfortable – and effective – against debutante Fhulufhelo Ramaliba, who hails from Limpopo.
Others worth watching include the outstanding Sogcwayi brothers, Sanele and Mhlanganisi, who come up-country from the Eastern Cape with big reputations. Sanele won multiple SA amateur championships while Mhlanganisi has already made strong inroads as a professional.
Trainer Manny Fernandes, meanwhile, is excited about his bantamweight prospect Ndabazinhle Phiri, unbeaten in five outings, who is sure to be well-matched against Thami Luthuli, unbeaten in nine fights.
The March 2 tournament, starting at 2pm, will be streamed exclusively live on the iME platform at a cost of R50: https://app.i-me.tech/ime-hub/stream-live/dfc4e03545a011ef99fd5d94113fdeb6/941ca567-979a-43d0-923c-158bd0a8e374
