Ryno Liebenberg has fought many tough guys before, but Vincent Feigenbutz, his opponent this weekend, is in another realm altogether.
Part of the German’s preparations include sleeping in an “ice cave” at -15° in the mountains of Slovenia.
“We do not want to endanger the fight, nor are we totally crazy,” explained manager Rainer Gottwald. “The whole thing takes place under careful medical supervision.”
It gets weirder: the Feigenbutz camp has also set up a training ring in the snow, taking preparations to the very extreme for what he expects to be a hard fight. Conditions are tough and it’s harder to get punches off, but Feigenbutz expects to reap the benefits in Ludwigsburg, a short way from Stuttgart, on Saturday night.
“He loves the variety and the fun we have up here,” said Gottwald. “We hired a nutritionist who does a great job. The camp is in top form.”
Feigenbutz is on a run of six wins and this will be the third defence of his IBF Inter-Continental super-middleweight title.
Liebenberg is the underdog given the German’s youth and superior record, which includes 25 knockouts in 27 wins, with two defeats.
