'Black Mamba' ready for 'The Rock'

Wilberforce 'Black Mamba' Shihepo is pencilled in for a showdown with South African cruiserweight champion Thabiso 'The Rock' Mchunu.They are set to clash at the fifth edition of the 'Battle of the Warriors' boxing tournament that will feature five fights on Sunday at the Sun Arena in Pretoria.The 36-year-old Namibian and Mchunu's bout is an eight-rounder.With 36 fights, 25 wins (18 by knockout) and 11 loses, Black Mamba has his work cut out for him after losing the WBA Pan African cruiserweight title to South Africa's Akani 'Prime' Phuzi on 14 July.His opponent, the 31-year-old Mchunu, has 25 fights, 20 wins (12 by knockout) and five losses to his credit, and is the overwhelming favourite to win the fight. He last fought in December last year in a rematch against Thomas Oosthuizen, where he reclaimed his African Boxing Union (ABU) cruiserweight title and retained his South African title via a 12-round unanimous decision, after losing to the same boxer in September that year.Whether he will match Shihepo's strength remains to be seen, as the Namibian's trainer Immanuel 'Ace' Moses is confident that his charge will put up a great fight.“He is always ready to fight. Black Mamba is one of the strong guys, and if he really wants it, he can take it. “He still has more fights in him. He has lost to good guys in the past, but we are pushing him to do better.“I have another fight for him after this, so he has to do well,” Moses said.The boxing tournament will be headlined by South Africans Walter Dlamini and Mlongo Nkululeko, who will fight for their country's middleweight title as well as the ABU Africa middleweight crown.Super flyweights Simangele Hadebe and Thema Zuma will also clash, while Shervontaigh Koopman will face Wandile Ndela in the junior middleweight division over four rounds. In another junior middleweight fight, Anthony Grobler will trade leather with Ramsy Hlungwana.LIMBA MUPETAMILIMBA MUPETAMI

'Black Mamba' ready for 'The Rock'

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-04

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'Black Mamba' ready for 'The Rock'

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Namibian Sun 2025-04-04

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