The tiff between former world champion Simpiwe Vetyeka and his erstwhile promoter Andile Sidinile seems to have worsened after the boxer accused Sidinile of not informing him about his stripping by the WBA.
Vetyeka is one of the three boxers who were mentioned in a Dispatch report of having been stripped of their titles due to inactivity imposed by their signing with handlers from abroad.
The two others are Mvukile Magwaca who was relieved of his WBA International bantamweight title, and Lusanda Komani who saw his IBO featherweight belt being taken away from him.
Vetyeka was stripped of his WBA International featherweight crown which had helped him to re-enter the WBA ratings at the fourth spot.
But the boxer said he was never informed of the decision to relieve him of the crown.
He said his Irish manager Gary Hyde was currently engaged with the WBA about the issue arguing his fighter was never given the opportunity to either accept or request an extension in order to engage in a title defence.
“Gary was furious when he found out that I was stripped by the WBA without being informed,” he said.
Vetyeka said he suspected that the WBA might have sent a letter informing him of being stripped to Sidinile who is his former promoter.
Sidinile promoted Vetyeka’s last bout which the Mdantsane veteran won over Japanese Tyuyoshi Tameda at Orient Theatre on April last year.
After the fight Vetyela dumped Sidinile when he was one of two boxers who were not paid their purses for the fight.
Now the boxer suspects that in his bid to exact revenge, Sidinile deliberately held back the information from the WBA about his stripping.
Sidinile, however, has shot down the allegations insisting that he informed Vetyeka of the letter from the WBA stripping him. The letter seen by Dispatch, informs Vetyeka that he would be stripped of the WBA international as he had failed to defend it in 180 days since winning it.
Vetyeka won the title when he beat Mexican Arturo Santos Reyes on December 12 2014.
He successfully defended it by stopping Colombian Arturo Santos Reyes on November 28 2015.
He was supposed to also defend it when he beat Tameda, but the fight was reduced to a non-title fight which had adverse consequences for his champion status.
Sidinile insisted he forwarded the WBA letter to Vetyeka after receiving it.
“I informed the WBA Vetyeka was no longer under my promotion, but I still forwarded the letter to him.
“It is unfair to be accused of being responsible for his stripping when I went out of my way to ensure he was informed of what the WBA was planning about him.”
According to the e-mail information, Sidinile indeed received the letter on July 5 last year and forwarded it to Vetyeka’s e-mail address two days later.
But it is not clear if Vetyeka did receive the letter.
Vetyeka said he was only aware that he had been stripped when he saw UK boxer Scott Quigg fighting for the crown against Mexican Jose Cayetano this past December.
“I know for a fact that Gary would have pushed for me to either fight Quigg for the title or else defend it against someone else.”
Vetyeka’s scheduled ring return against Hungarian David Berna was cancelled at the 11th-hour when Moroccan authorities blocked the tournament organised by Hyde in Casablanca last weekend.