Six months ago, Moyisi Booi appeared to be headed for the ignominy of being another talented Mdantsane youngster unable to fulfil his potential when he was knocked out by unheralded Zimbabwean Ndabezinhle Phiri in Midrand.
Defiantly fighting in the flyweight division despite his bulky body, Booi’s toughest fight appeared to be more with the scales than the four opponents he had beaten with ease, knocking out two of them.
His promoter, Ayanda Matiti of Xaba Promotions, kept telling his camp to move him up to junior-bantamweight before disaster struck.
But as they say, winning breeds complacency and he insisted on squeezing his body into the 50kg limit.
Seemingly running away with the win against Phiri, the Johannesburg altitude conspired to suddenly make Booi vulnerable two rounds before the end as the Zimbabwean fighter pounced to force a stoppage.
The loss served as a reality check, with XP threatening to release Booi if he insisted on continuing to fight at flyweight.
“I had to make a serious threat to them because I was tired of seeing such talent killing itself,” XP boss Matiti said.
Booi agreed to move up to the junior-bantamweight division and Matiti took the audacious step of matching him against third-rated Sihle Jelwana.
Though Jelwana had suffered back-to-back losses in Tanzania, he was a step up for a five-fight novice coming off a knockout loss.
But Booi hardly raised a sweat as he displayed incredible power with each punch, wobbling Jelwana in their clash at East London’s Abbotsford Christian Centre in April.
Hardly putting a foot wrong, Booi ended the fight in two minutes and 22 seconds, vaulting to title contention owing to Jelwana’s lofty rating.
With top-rated Sechaba Zuma’s challenge against champion Lwando Mgabi already confirmed for May 24 in Estcourt, KwaZulu-Natal, Booi should be next in line to face the winner.
Zuma’s top rating continues to baffle pundits because has not beaten a boxer with a winning record in his four wins, two losses and a draw.
Matiti is already salivating at the prospect of the fight if Duncan Village-born Mgabi wins, as it will fuel his passion for promoting local derbies.
“If Zuma pulls off the upset, we will still push to make the fight, but it will carry more appeal if Mgabi comes through due to the storied rivalry between Mdantsane and Duncan Village.”
Though he produced brute power against Jelwana, Matiti wants his charge to rely more on his boxing skills to set up his heavy hands.
With a strong technical team consisting of Nkoi Matshoba — renowned for unearthing an abundance of talent, including former world champion Nkosinathi Joyi — and Velile Damoyi behind him, Booi may just live up to expectations and conquer the world.
Daily Dispatch
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