Bantamweight boxer Lusizo Manzana is hoping to finally hit a smooth run in his career as he returns to the ring after a turbulent year fraught by inactivity and warnings for defiance.
The Mthatha boxer will face Aphiwe Rasmeni in a Lakhe Boxing Promotions debut at Tsogo Sun in Hemingways Mall on Tuesday next week, determined to pave the way for a national title shot.
Manzana’s career has been a roller-coaster ride since he was last in action in December 2024, when he lost in Tanzania against local hero Ibrahim Mafia in a contentious outcome.
Adding salt to the wound, Manzana incurred the wrath of Boxing SA for taking the bout without authorisation.
He was fortunate to escape with just a serious warning and an order to perform community service.
A year earlier, the left-hander’s career was nearly cut short by a shoulder injury, with his shoulder dislocating twice in two bouts.
One occurred during the biggest moment of his professional run when he vied for the vacant SA bantamweight title against Landile Ngxeke.
While holding his own, with the bout yet to take a decisive direction, Manzana’s shoulder suddenly popped out while throwing a punch, leaving him grimacing in pain with a grotesque lump.
The bout was stopped in the fourth round with Ngxeke handed the title as Manzana was unable to continue.
It was the second time the injury had flared up, having done so five months earlier when he contested a continental title against Mawande Mbusi but was able to fight with one hand and finished the fight as a winner.
He decided to properly attend to the injury by undergoing surgery to fix it for good.
He appeared to have put it to rest when he scored a third-round stoppage win over Siphosethu Mhlahlo subsequent to the Ngxeke debacle.
While his career has been stop-start, he managed to cling to his third spot in the ratings.
This boosted his chances of contesting for the soon-to-be vacant title in anticipation of Ngxeke relinquishing it owing to his IBF title clash against Jose Salas Reyes in Mexico on Sunday morning (SA time).
Having learnt of the past misfortune, Manzana’s camp is wary of planning further ahead than the bout against Rasmeni on Tuesday.
His trainer, Thembani Gopheni, said the boxer was happy to finally get back to the ring and overcome his personal challenges.
“Manzana is happy that he will be fighting and though he never left the gym, the fact that he was not fighting was affecting him,” he said.
“There was a time when I had to convince him not to give up, and fortunately, he listened.
“And I must thank Lakhe Promotions for coming to his rescue; hopefully this will be the start of a smooth run for him.”
Gopheni insisted that while they were aware of Ngxeke’s imminent renouncement of the title, the focus was to beat Rasmeni in a battle of fight-starved boxers, with the Sada boxer having also not fought since September 2024.
Rasmeni put up a gutsy performance against top-rated Likho Sigaba for the provincial title before finally succumbing in the ninth round.
While his record deceptively shows six losses with just three wins, Rasmeni is more dangerous for an ill-prepared opponent, and Manzana will need to bring his A game to get back to winning ways.
Daily Dispatch
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