Tommy and Hekkie face tough start
by Ron Jackson 29 December 2011, 20:56
Two South Africans will defend their IBO titles early in the new year.
And the Klitschko brothers will put their four heavyweight belts on the line in February and March.
Tommy Oosthuizen is scheduled to defend his super-middleweight belt in Las Vegas on February 1.
The fight will be on the undercard of the tournament in which Victor Oriz meets Andre Berto at the MGM Grand. The name of the challenger will be announced soon.
Oosthuizen has done well in his previous outing in the United States, but fighting abroad is always a challenge, especially at one of the top boxing venues in the world.
Hekkie Budler will at least have hometown support when he defends his strawweight belt against a Filipino, Florante Condes, at Emperors Palace near Kempton Park on March 3.
But the fight will be a tough one for Budler. Condes, a southpaw, has taken IBF mini-flyweight champion Nkosinathi Joyi to twelve rounds.
BROTHERS KLITSCHKO OFF TO EARLY START
WBC heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko is set to defend his title against England’s Dereck Chisora in Munich on February 18.
And two weeks later his brother Wladimir will defend his WBA, IBF and WBO belts against a Frenchman, Jean Marc
Mormeck, in Düsseldorf.
Several other leading boxers have also finalised plans to start the year in style.
Veteran heavyweight Eddie Chambers will meet former WBO champion Siarhei Liakhovich in Philadelphia on January 21.
Jorge Arce is scheduled the make the first defence of his WBO bantamweight belt in Durango, Mexico, on February 18. His opponent will be announced soon.
Welshman Nathan Cleverly will fight in Cardiff on February 25 when he makes the second defence of his WBO light-heavyweight title in a fight against Andrzej Fonfara of Poland.
Kiko Martinez, of Spain, will defend his European super-bantamweight title against Robert Rolle in Berlin on January 27.
In an all-Mexican match-up, Marco Antonio Rubio will challenge Julio Cesar Chavez Jr for his WBA middleweight belt in San Antonio, Texas, on February 4.
VETERAN HEAVYWEIGHT RETIRES
But heavyweight Luan Krasniqi won’t be training to fight anyone in 2012. Born in Albania but raised in Germany, the 40-year-old Krasniqi challenged Lamon Brewster for the WBO title In September 2005.
He was ahead on points before the American stopped him in the ninth round.
He retires with a professional record of 30-4-1, including 14 knockouts.
It has been reported that Andre Ward went into the Super Six super-middleweight final against Carl Froch with a double fracture to his left hand.
The American won the fight and remained undefeated at 25-0; 13.