Mdantsane boxer Zolani Tete continued with his UK heroics when he scored a seven-round stoppage win over Mexican Victor Ruiz at Echo Arena in Liverpool at the weekend.
The win capped a third knockout streak for Tete since he adopted Liverpool as his boxing home.
In his previous fights at the venue he halted both Paul Butler and Jose Santos Gonzalez in seven and eight rounds respectively.
His growing popularity in Liverpool has now earned him the Scouse African moniker, which is sitting well with the NU12 Mdantsane southpaw.
Defending his IBF international bantamweight belt he picked up in his win over Gonzalez in March, Tete floored Ruiz with a body punch to bring an end to the fight he dominated from the first round.
Now there are talks of him challenging IBF champion Lee Haskins.
Tete’s manager Mla Tengimfene confirmed that preliminary talks have started for his charge to duke it out against Haskins.
“Yes, there are talks to that regard so much that Haskins’ representative came all the way from Wales to be ringside to our fight,” Tengimfene said from Liverpool.
Tete’s UK promoter Frank Warren said his son George had already started negotiating the fight.
“The fight seems possible but nothing has been finalised as yet,” Warren was quoted as saying.
However, Haskins has a mandatory fight due against compatriot Stuart Hall, a former holder of the belt.
Hall won the vacant title beating SA’s Vusi Malinga before losing it to Butler who later relinquished it to challenge Tete’s IBF crown in the lower junior bantamweight division but got himself knocked out for his first and only professional defeat.
Since then Tete has vacated the junior bantamweight belt due to unfavourable conditions for his mandatory against Puerto Rican McJoe Arroyo.
Having now moved to the bantamweight, Tete has been in devastating form displaying immense skills and power on a day that mourned the death of boxing great Muhammad Ali.
Tete is expected to arrive in East London this afternoon.
The win has stretched Tete’s fight record to 20 knockouts in 24 wins with just three defeats, two of them being debatable, while he suffered the third when he was stopped by current IBO flyweight champion Moruti Mthalane when Tete was still a greenhorn.
While Haskins is his immediate target, there is a possibility that Tete’s challenge against WBA interim champion Zhanat Zhaki- yanov of Kazakhstan might materialise in September.
The Kazakhstani was originally tabbed as Tete’s opponent for the weekend fight before Ruiz was officially unveiled as the foe.
But Zhakiyanov denied that he was ever approached for the fight.
However, prefight reports from UK revealed that the Kazakhstani is back in the running for the September duel.
Tengimfene said any opponent for a fight with world title connotations would be welcomed.
“Like I said our goal is to go after a world title regardless of who holds it,” he said. “Whether it is Haskins or Zhakiyanov is immaterial to us.”
The provincial department of sport recreation, arts and culture (Dsrac) was thrilled with Tete’s victory.
“Through the win, Tete flew the provincial and national flag with pride. We wish him well for the future and believe he has it in him to become the greatest boxer to come from our province,” said Dsrac HOD Mzolisi Matutu.
Tete does it again in UK
The win capped a third knockout streak for Tete since he adopted Liverpool as his boxing home.
In his previous fights at the venue he halted both Paul Butler and Jose Santos Gonzalez in seven and eight rounds respectively.
His growing popularity in Liverpool has now earned him the Scouse African moniker, which is sitting well with the NU12 Mdantsane southpaw.
Defending his IBF international bantamweight belt he picked up in his win over Gonzalez in March, Tete floored Ruiz with a body punch to bring an end to the fight he dominated from the first round.
Now there are talks of him challenging IBF champion Lee Haskins.
Tete’s manager Mla Tengimfene confirmed that preliminary talks have started for his charge to duke it out against Haskins.
“Yes, there are talks to that regard so much that Haskins’ representative came all the way from Wales to be ringside to our fight,” Tengimfene said from Liverpool.
Tete’s UK promoter Frank Warren said his son George had already started negotiating the fight.
“The fight seems possible but nothing has been finalised as yet,” Warren was quoted as saying.
However, Haskins has a mandatory fight due against compatriot Stuart Hall, a former holder of the belt.
Hall won the vacant title beating SA’s Vusi Malinga before losing it to Butler who later relinquished it to challenge Tete’s IBF crown in the lower junior bantamweight division but got himself knocked out for his first and only professional defeat.
Since then Tete has vacated the junior bantamweight belt due to unfavourable conditions for his mandatory against Puerto Rican McJoe Arroyo.
Having now moved to the bantamweight, Tete has been in devastating form displaying immense skills and power on a day that mourned the death of boxing great Muhammad Ali.
Tete is expected to arrive in East London this afternoon.
The win has stretched Tete’s fight record to 20 knockouts in 24 wins with just three defeats, two of them being debatable, while he suffered the third when he was stopped by current IBO flyweight champion Moruti Mthalane when Tete was still a greenhorn.
While Haskins is his immediate target, there is a possibility that Tete’s challenge against WBA interim champion Zhanat Zhaki- yanov of Kazakhstan might materialise in September.
The Kazakhstani was originally tabbed as Tete’s opponent for the weekend fight before Ruiz was officially unveiled as the foe.
But Zhakiyanov denied that he was ever approached for the fight.
However, prefight reports from UK revealed that the Kazakhstani is back in the running for the September duel.
Tengimfene said any opponent for a fight with world title connotations would be welcomed.
“Like I said our goal is to go after a world title regardless of who holds it,” he said. “Whether it is Haskins or Zhakiyanov is immaterial to us.”
The provincial department of sport recreation, arts and culture (Dsrac) was thrilled with Tete’s victory.
“Through the win, Tete flew the provincial and national flag with pride. We wish him well for the future and believe he has it in him to become the greatest boxer to come from our province,” said Dsrac HOD Mzolisi Matutu.
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