Some are demanding astronomical figure purses while others are claiming injuries on realising that they had signed to face the country’s hottest star, Azinga Fuzile.
Such is the reputation of the 22-year-old Duncan Village star that even though he has fought just 12 times, his name already sends fear to his opponents.
The latest to chicken out is Russian Mark Urvanov who accepted the fight and terms only to claim an injury in training weeks before the December 9 bout.
Then the fight was offered to his compatriot, Shavkatzdzhon Rakhimov, who beat Malcolm Klassen by a stoppage.
But the Russian demanded $50,000 (R691,000) upfront.
“I must admit that we were getting desperate because not only should an opponent be approved by the IBF but he must also be willing to accept our terms,” said Fuzile’s manager, Colin Nathan, who trains the fighter and manages him under No Doubt Management company.
Fuzile is scheduled to defend the IBF Africa junior-lightweight belt. While pinning down a challenger for him proved to be as elusive, the December 2 date at Orient Theatre has been secured.
It was after spreading his tentacles far and wild that Nathan was able to find a willing opponent, surprisingly not far from home.
The opponent will be Ibrahim Class from Tanzania who will come to the fight with the honour of being some sort of a world champion.
Class, who has lost four times scoring 22 wins, has fought in foreign territory with commendable results, a rarity for Tanzanian boxers.
In fact he won his vacant Global Boxing Council world lightweight title with a decision in Germany beating Jose Forero.
He dropped down to the junior-lightweight to beat South African Koos Sibiya to win the second version of his world title.
Other countries he has enjoyed success in include Panama where he inflicted the first defeat of local hero Zapir Rasulov.
The 28-year-old is enjoying an eight-bout winning streak, another rarity for Tanzanians who are often used as cannon fodder to pad records of Asian and European prospects.
Nathan believes Class will be a tougher challenge than Urvanov due to his fighting style.
“Urvanov is a typical come forward Russian but this guy has plenty of tricks in his repertoire,” he said.
“He knows how to survive in the ring meaning Azinga will need to put on his running shoes to chase him down. But we are happy with his boxing prowess especially as he has beaten opponents in their own backyard.”
The fight will top the Rumble Africa Promotions show and it will mark the second time Fuzile is engaging in a fight in less than two months.
In his last bout last month he scored his biggest win when he stopped Klassen in four rounds.
Nathan has revealed that the unbeaten southpaw will be chasing for a world title shot next year.Click here to edit this text...