As compliments go, Kevin Lerena received the ultimate last week with a call from Tyson Fury’s camp.
The world heavyweight champion has hired the South African to help him prepare for his massive title unification bout with Oleksandr Usyk in February. Lerena leaves this week, both with a plan to give Fury the hard work and sparring he requires and to press for a spot on the Saudi Arabia tournament.
“We are confident of arranging something,” said promoter Rodney Berman. “Kevin’s profile is high, especially after the Daniel Dubois fight, and he’s always all action.”
Indeed, that fight was on the undercard of Fury’s fight against Derek Chisora, where Lerena struck up a friendship with the big Briton. Fury himself was said to be impressed by Lerena’s grit and handspeed against Dubois.
Lerena, of course, is ideally suited to assist Fury. He, like Usyk, is a southpaw and his dimensions are similar to the Ukrainian’s. Lerena’s endless workrate means he’ll spar all day if required, plus he will use the opportunity to learn all he can from Fury.
Although Lerena is campaigning at bridgerweight, he is still rated among the heavyweights and would be happy to fight any of the big names provided it’s worth his while.
Whether or not Lerena cracks a spot on the Saudi card, all indications are that he will be matched with Lucasz Rozinski for the WBC belt in the first quarter of 2024. The WBC’s ruling on the matter is said to be imminent.
In a curious twist, another SA fighter, Ruann Visser, has been roped in to assist Usyk, not least because his 2,07m frame mimics that of Fury.
