Pretoria’s boxing fans have been sucking at the back teat for years now when it comes to the hosting of top tournaments, but on Labour Day, Thursday May 1, they – and all sports fans in the city – will get the chance to witness arguably the biggest tournament since Danie Venter knocked out Shawn Cox in the Heartfelt Arena on the other side of the city 12 years ago to become the World Boxing Federation (WBF) cruiserweight champion.

In fact, this tournament titled ‘The Reckoning’, which is being presented at the SunBet Arena at Times Square in Pretoria, will be the first major event of the new promotional agency, Legacy Boxing. The event will definitely be bigger than the above in terms of the amount of action that spectators will get for their money.

Boxing fans who still want to get their last-minute tickets for the spectacle will have to act fast. They are available at TicketPro.

“It’s definitely the best venue for a boxing tournament in South Africa… in fact, I’ve boxed all over the world and this venue compares very well to the best I’ve come across anywhere else…”

These were the words on Monday afternoon of former Tuks loose forward and later SA heavyweight champion, Chris Thompson, whose fight against Mussa Ajibu of Malawi will also be part of the main fight card on May 1.

The boxers who will be part of the 12 fights during The Reckoning were introduced to the media on Monday and they also had the opportunity to meet their opponents for the traditional pre-fight chat. Judging by the electric atmosphere at this event as well as the words that flew around and the determined “stare offs”, there can be no doubt that the spark will fly when the tournament kicks off at eleven o’clock on Labour Day with a “Day Card” of six exciting fights.

This will be followed by an even more exciting Main Card of six fights, which will include several duels between world-class boxers. This Main Card kicks off at 19:00 in the evening.

The tournament caters for every kind of boxing action that purists could ask for. The Day Card features everything from energetic, talented newcomers like Gary van Staden and Seth van Aswegen in their first professional fight in the super middleweight division to the heavyweight rematch between the experienced Akani Phuzi and Youssouf Mwanza of the DRC.

This part of the tournament concludes a fight in which Pretoria’s “lost son”, former African welterweight champion, Jabulani Makhence, who will be able to fight in front of his hometown’s people for the first time in his professional career. His opponent is the Angolan and former WBF African welterweight champion, Maiala Antonio.

Sebastiaan Rothmann of Sebs Pro Elite Boxing at Loftus Versfeld, who “discovered” Makhence ten years ago, will be in his corner again.

The Main Card teems with champions and world-class boxers. This part of the tournament is ushered in by a fight between rising star and undefeated bantamweight boxer, Tiisetso Matikinca, who is fighting against the dangerous Western Cape native, Mbulelo Gubula.

Then follows the featherweight fight between another undefeated youngster, Lindokuhle Khuzwayo, and the experienced Sithembiso Maduna from KwaZulu-Natal.

Next on the list it’s time the bigger men, when Thomson and Ajibu’s fight will be followed by the duel between the current South African and former WBC Silver Cruiserweight champion, Thabiso Mchunu, and his dangerous opponent, Amador Kalonji of the DRC, who is the current WBF African Cruiserweight champion.

Just before the big main event, there will definitely be some fireworks in the ring, when South Africa’s current IBO World Welterweight champion, Tulani Mbenge, and the Namibian Welterweight champion, Emmanuel Mungandjela, will continue Monday’s verbal war during the press conference in the ring with their fists.

This will be followed by the historic main event, when Serhiy Radchenko of Ukraine will challenge South Africa’s Kevin Lerena to try to take his WBC Bridgerweight title from him.

Radchenko and his entourage arrived in South Africa over the weekend after a tiring process of entering the country, apparently due to the war situation in Ukraine.

The challenger said that with this fight he also wants to become part of his country’s proud boxing history, which has produced legends such as the current heavyweight world champion, Oleksandr Usyk, as well as the famous Klitschko brothers, Wladimir and Vitali.

However, Lerena assured his supporters that no one could just show up on his doorstep and take his title. According to Lerena, he is in the best shape of his life and ready to teach the challenger a lesson.

Do you have more information about the story?

Please send us an email to bennittb@rekord.co.za or phone us on 083 625 4114.

For free breaking and community news, visit Rekord’s websites: Rekord East

For more news and interesting articles, like Rekord on Facebook, follow us on Twitter or Instagram