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Manyuchi back on main stage

Sport
CHARLES Manyuchi has been given a chance to reclaim the World Boxing Council (WBC) silver welterweight title next year after the boxing governing board announced they have facilitated a fight which would make the superstar’s dream imminent.

CHARLES Manyuchi has been given a chance to reclaim the World Boxing Council (WBC) silver welterweight title next year after the boxing governing board announced they have facilitated a fight which would make the superstar’s dream imminent. BY HENRY MHARA

Manyuchi was knocked out in the first round by Qudratillo Abduqaxorov in March to lose the title. Indications were that he would be given a shot at the title in a rematch against Abduqaxorov, but the Uzbekistani’s camp failed to organise the fight in a prescribed time frame, and as was agreed in the contract.

The WBC subsequently stripped Abduqaxorov of the title, who had initially defeated Dmitry Mikhaylenko to retain the belt. American Shawn Porter won the vacant belt when defeating Adrian Granados in November.

Manyuchi’s handlers, Oriental Quarries Boxing Promotions (OQBP), asked the governing body, during the WBC Convention in Baku in October, to have their boxer given a chance to challenge for the title.

According to OQBP, their request had been granted, with Manyuchi set to fight the winner between Porter and Abduqaxorov, who are meeting early next year.

In a statement yesterday, OQPB operations manager Christopher Malunga said: “The World Boxing Council has ordered the former welterweight silver champion Qudratillo Abduqaxorov to fight current silver welterweight champion Shawn Porter in January/February 2018 and the winner shall be committed to fight Charles Manyuchi. This comes after I made a request in Baku during the 55th Convention of the WBC to the board of governors that Manyuchi should be given a chance to challenge the winner between Shawn Porter and Adrian Granados.

“I’m very grateful to the World Boxing Council president Mauricio Sulaiman, the board of governors and the entire staff of the WBC secretariat. The timing is excellent because it gives us more time to prepare Manyuchi for the championship.”

Manyuchi has two bouts lined up in few weeks, which will now act as warm-up matches for the big fight.

He returns to the ring on December 30 in Lusaka, Zambia, with a yet to be known opponent as one of the supporting acts for the fight between Alfred Muwowo, who will be defending his African Boxing Union title against challenger Dalisizwe Komani of South Africa in a 12-round contest.

The 28-year-old will start the year with a WBC International welterweight title fight set for the Harare International Conference Centre on January 26.

Manyuchi’s bout will be part of the Friday Fight Night Pan African boxing series, an event organised by South Africa’s Kalakoda Boxing in conjunction with Kwese Sports.

The opponent has been again kept under the wraps, but Manyuchi last week confirmed that contracts for the fight had already been signed.

It would be the first time that the boxer will be returning to the Harare venue since he knocked out Jose Agustin Feria in a non-title fight in October last year.