Lerena goes into exile for better offers

World Boxing Council bridgerweight champion Kevin “Two Guns” Lerena is on the same journey that was travelled by the likes of Jake Ntuli and Lovemore Ndou, who went into exile looking to further their careers.

Ntuli from Noordgesig, Soweto, relocated to the UK where he won the British Empire belt in 1952, becoming the first black South African to win that championship.

In his biography, Long Walk to Freedom, Nelson Mandela wrote: “Ntuli was our greatest hero. He was the most eloquent example of what African boxers could achieve if given the opportunity.”

Ndou left SA for Australia in 1995. Eleven years later, he won the IBF junior-welterweight eliminator for the right to meet current title holder Ricky Hatton.

Lerena is the first African fighter to hold the bridgerweight since WBC president Mauricio Sulaiman created it in 2020. 

Lerena, who slotted perfectly into a world where social media and branding have become ubiquitous, is the beneficiary of the successful coup by Saudi Arabia to turn their country into a boxing mecca.

That strategy has reshaped the landscape of the heavyweight division through Turki Alalshik, chairman of General Entertainment Authority, who has successfully smoothed away the feud between top British promoters Frank Warren and Eddie Hearn.

They now work together in taking fighters to Kingdom Arena, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. That included Warren's charge Tyson Fury facing Oleksandr Usk in the heavyweight unification contest.

The Ukrainian won it by split points on September 29 last year. Usyk retained the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, IBO, and The Ring heavyweight titles, and won Fury's WBC belt.

The Briton, who tasted his first defeat in 36 fights, is in camp in Malta, just off the coast of Italy, where he is preparing for a rematch with Usyk on December 21 at the same venue of their first fight.

Lerena's prosperous career is now guided by Fury's manager in England.

Speaking to Sowetan yesterday from his hotel room, the former IBO cruiserweight champion who also held the WBA Intercontinental heavyweight title said: “Yes, I am part of Tyson's camp, we have the same manager, so we are now in Malta, preparing for his rematch with Usyk. I am assisting Tyson with sparring, it's going well.”

Lerena, who came just short of winning the WBA belt after dropping Daniel Dubois three times in round one, to be stopped in round three, added: “I think I will be fighting in February but, ja, staying here in Malta and being looked after by Team Fury is great.

“I would say South African fighters don't get the opportunity and don't have the skill to mix with the best of the best in the world, especially in the heavyweight division, and I am doing it. It is testimony to my skill set and what I do.”

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