Brandon Thysse and Roarke Knapp meet in their long-awaited rematch at Emperors Palace near Kempton Park on Saturday night, in a clash for the ABU Africa junior middleweight title.
The tournament will be shown live on SuperSport Variety from 7pm to 11pm.
Their first fight, also at Emperors Palace, on November 30 2019, turned into a real slugfest until Thysse won on a knockout at 2 minutes and 10 seconds into the seventh round.
Since his victory over Knapp, Thysse (14-2-1; 12), from Germiston, has scored wins over Boyd Allen (ko 3) and Toni Silvennoinen (ko 10).
The 24-year-old Knapp (13-1-1; 11) has recovered after his loss to Thysse and has won against Tristin Truter (tko 2), Simon Dladla (ko 1), Bensit Makangila (rtd 2), and Cristino Ndombassy (rtd 5).
This could evolve into another slugfest with the gutsy Knapp giving his all, but can he turn the tables on Thysse, who is the more controlled fighter?
Odds favour Thysse in Knapp rematch
Another slugfest expected in fight for ABU Africa junior middleweight title
Image: James Gradidge/Gallo Images
Brandon Thysse and Roarke Knapp meet in their long-awaited rematch at Emperors Palace near Kempton Park on Saturday night, in a clash for the ABU Africa junior middleweight title.
The tournament will be shown live on SuperSport Variety from 7pm to 11pm.
Their first fight, also at Emperors Palace, on November 30 2019, turned into a real slugfest until Thysse won on a knockout at 2 minutes and 10 seconds into the seventh round.
Since his victory over Knapp, Thysse (14-2-1; 12), from Germiston, has scored wins over Boyd Allen (ko 3) and Toni Silvennoinen (ko 10).
The 24-year-old Knapp (13-1-1; 11) has recovered after his loss to Thysse and has won against Tristin Truter (tko 2), Simon Dladla (ko 1), Bensit Makangila (rtd 2), and Cristino Ndombassy (rtd 5).
This could evolve into another slugfest with the gutsy Knapp giving his all, but can he turn the tables on Thysse, who is the more controlled fighter?
Komanisi, Munyai clash pushed to September amid interim bouts
The odds are that Thysse could once again win inside the distance in the middle rounds.
On the same card, the 28-year-old Joshua Pretorius (9-5; 5) makes the first defence of his SA and African Boxing Union heavyweight titles against 27-year-old southpaw Chris Thompson (11-2-1; 7).
Pretorius, from Richards Bay in KwaZulu-Natal, showed good form and stamina in his winning fight against defending SA heavyweight champion Juan Roux on March 26 2022 at Emperors Palace.
Thompson, 27, who fights from the southpaw stance, has compiled a record of 11-2-1; 7.
He travelled to Dar-Es-Salaam for his most recent fight, according to Boxrec, and fought to a majority draw against comparative novice Shafic Kiwanuka.
The odds are that Thompson will have to lift his game against Pretorius if he wants to take the titles.
Lightweight 4 rounds — Yolandi Gelderblom v Sazisiwe Simon (women’s bout) Junior lightweight 4 rounds — Samuel Takyi (Ghana) v Mandlenkosi Sibuso. Welterweight 4 rounds — Keanu Koopman v Bongani Ngqubuka. Light-heavyweight 4 rounds — Gerhard Thysse v Penitence Trust Duma. Mini-flyweight — Beaven Sibanda (Zimbabwe) v Bandile Leopeng. — SuperSport.com
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