East London boxers Landile Ngxeke and Thulani Mbenge will blaze a trail abroad when they engage in world title bouts against unbeaten opponents in the United Arab Emirates and Mexico this weekend.
Mbenge will start the mission to put the city on the world map when he makes the first defence of his IBO world welterweight title against Russian Vadim Musaev in Dubai on Friday.
It will be over a year since Mbenge won the title when he beat Englishman Michael McKinson in London in October 2024.
Mbenge, from Mdantsane but now based in Johannesburg, sounded confident of retaining his belt and is aiming for bigger titles, even though his Achilles heel has been inactivity.
He was last in action in May when he destroyed Namibian Emmanuel Mungandjela in three rounds in a fight downgraded from a title defence to a non-title bout due to Mungandjela’s lack of credentials.
“I am still hungry for success and that is what is driving me going to this fight,” Mbenge said.
His trainer, Sean Smith, said the fight was for Mbenge to preserve his IBO title before embarking on a mission to chase other world titles, such as the WBC crown, which rates him sixth.
“Our IBO title defence was overdue and we had to take this fight to ensure we do not get stripped,” Smith said.
Musaev is unbeaten in 13 bouts and has an illustrious amateur pedigree with more than 70 bouts, having won an Olympics silver medal.
This makes him one of a series of unbeaten opponents Mbenge has faced, with only two of them able to beat him in 24 bouts.
However, at 34, Mbenge is in the twilight of his career, with inactivity not helping his cause on the world stage.
While his situation is almost similar to 30-year-old Ngxeke, who vies for the vacant IBF bantamweight title in Mexico on Saturday (Sunday morning SA time), the Sada-born, Mdantsane-bred boxer has kept a consistent run, with his last bout being only six months ago.
Ngxeke faces the biggest bout of his career when he takes on unbeaten Mexican Jose Salas Reyes in Mexico City.
While the bout will mark the first time he fights abroad, trainer Colin Nathan said Ngxeke was in high spirits and ready to bring the title home.
“Ngxeke is dialled in for this fight and his confidence is phenomenal,” he said.
It will not be the first time Nathan takes a boxer to Mexico and returns with a win, having guided Sivenathi Nontshinga when he regained the IBF junior flyweight crown from Mexican Adrien Curiel in February 2024.
Nathan was also in Nontshinga’s corner when he out-duelled another Mexican, Hector Flores, in Sonora in 2022.
While admitting a partisan Mexican crowd could be intimidating, Nathan said the country’s officiating did not discriminate against visiting boxers.
The IBF released the names of the judges, all coming from the US, while Mexican Alfredo Uruzquieta will be the third man in the ring.
The national boxing fraternity is divided on whether Ngxeke will be able to inflict the first loss on Reyes, who is unbeaten in 16 bouts, with 10 stoppages.
“Ngxeke will have to abandon his brawling penchant and instead use his attributes, such as reach advantage, in order to win,” said one active boxer, who wanted to remain anonymous.
Daily Dispatch
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