Veteran trainer Harold Volbrecht warned yesterday that most fighters risk ending their boxing careers too soon by fighting in wrong weight divisions.
He knows what he is talking about, having fought his whole career in the welterweight class, where he reigned supreme as the national champion with 19 defences until he retired in 1989.
"They train just to make the weight limit and that takes away a whole lot of things from them, strength is one of them. They become weak and that is not healthy. Remember, they still need to have sparring in those preparations.
"They actually do not have time to prepare for fights. I am talking about the specifics of a particular fight," explained the man who guided Corrie Sanders to a stunning second-round knockout win of Wladimir Klitschko for the WBO heavyweight title in Germany in 2003.
He said he had advised his charge, Johnny "The Hurricane" Muller, to relinquish the SA light heavyweight title.
Muller has held the SA and WBC International Silver titles in the 79.38kg division.
"Johnny has moved up to the cruiserweight division and his fight on April 13 against Donald Kapamba will be in that weight division," Volbrecht said about the eight rounder that will form part of the Rodney Berman and Jeff Ellis's box-and-dine tournament at Emperors Palace in Kempton Park.
The limit for the cruiserweight division - which is a division above the light heavyweight class - is 91.16kg. "Johnny is still very young at 24 and he is still growing. He did not feel strong in the light heavyweight division," added Volbrecht.
Muller - who is best described as a throwback to the fighters of the 1970s, who had a devil-may-care attitude - confirmed that he was "more comfortable at cruiserweight".
Volbrecht advices boxers on weight
Veteran trainer Harold Volbrecht warned yesterday that most fighters risk ending their boxing careers too soon by fighting in wrong weight divisions.
He knows what he is talking about, having fought his whole career in the welterweight class, where he reigned supreme as the national champion with 19 defences until he retired in 1989.
"They train just to make the weight limit and that takes away a whole lot of things from them, strength is one of them. They become weak and that is not healthy. Remember, they still need to have sparring in those preparations.
"They actually do not have time to prepare for fights. I am talking about the specifics of a particular fight," explained the man who guided Corrie Sanders to a stunning second-round knockout win of Wladimir Klitschko for the WBO heavyweight title in Germany in 2003.
He said he had advised his charge, Johnny "The Hurricane" Muller, to relinquish the SA light heavyweight title.
Muller has held the SA and WBC International Silver titles in the 79.38kg division.
"Johnny has moved up to the cruiserweight division and his fight on April 13 against Donald Kapamba will be in that weight division," Volbrecht said about the eight rounder that will form part of the Rodney Berman and Jeff Ellis's box-and-dine tournament at Emperors Palace in Kempton Park.
The limit for the cruiserweight division - which is a division above the light heavyweight class - is 91.16kg. "Johnny is still very young at 24 and he is still growing. He did not feel strong in the light heavyweight division," added Volbrecht.
Muller - who is best described as a throwback to the fighters of the 1970s, who had a devil-may-care attitude - confirmed that he was "more comfortable at cruiserweight".
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