Joburg South boxing champ remains undeterred
After making an international debut in the previous year, Gauteng champ Donjuan ‘The Iron Dragon’ van Heerden is looking forward to his next big fight.
Provincial middleweight champ Donjuan van Heerden went up against Ismael “Issou” Seck for the vacant IBO middleweight continental title in France late last year.
After making great strides in recent months, this proved to be the biggest fight in his boxing career against the Frenchman.
Though Van Heerden lost to his counterpart, the fight provided valuable experience and he is looking forward to fighting for much bigger titles in the future.
The boxing champ, who was named Boxing SA 2023 prospect of the year, has constantly kept the momentum going since.
Despite the minor setback, he said his fight in France was a new experience for him.
“It was awesome. If an opportunity pops up like that again, I will grab it with open hands. And if a rematch with Seck can happen that will also be something I will take. I feel that I won the fight and the judges gave it to him because of enjoying home ground advantage. I gave him a run for his money,” Van Heerden said.
He said people came to his locker room to tell him that in their eyes he had won the fight.
“It was an awesome experience and an awesome fight. I would like to do it again. I was taught from a young age that if a man beats you today, you go back tomorrow to beat him. I have big opportunities on the horizon, and I will take them all,” he explained.
He is expecting to go back into the ring in March in an eight-rounder and more information will be announced soon.
