Boxing trainer Sean Smith is impressed with the amount of effort two-time South African welterweight champion Thulani ‘Evolution’ Mbenge puts at training.
Mbenge is busy preparing for his upcoming fight against Souleymane Cissokho from France next month. Mbenge and Cissokho are scheduled to fight for the vacant World Boxing Council (WBC) Silver welterweight title in Nantes, France, on Saturday, 17 December.
“Everything is very good in as far as the preparations are concerned. I’m happy with everything. He sparred with Roarke Knapp. I may be away for three, four days for the Lerena fight,” Smith said.
The 31-year-old former world champion is rated seventh in the welterweight division by the WBC while Cissokho is 11th in the junior-middleweight.
Mbenge, a one-time International Boxing Organisation (IBO) welterweight titlist, has stopped his last three opponents. He has a professional record of 19 victories (15 stoppages) and a loss.
On the other hand, the 31-year-old Cissokho, who was born in Dakar, Senegal, has won all his 15 fights having stopped nine of his opponents.
Meanwhile, Smith is set to leave for the United Kingdom on Tuesday next week to team up with his brother Peter and boxer Kevin Lerena, who is going to challenge World Boxing Association (WBA) heavyweight champion Daniel ‘Dynamite’ Dubois at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London on Saturday, 3 December.
