By Monwabisi Jimlongo
It’s going to be more like Lerato ‘Lights Out’ Dlamini will be relaunching his boxing career when he clashes against Jess Rhey Talara Waminal from the Philippines at the East London International Convention Centre (ICC) on Friday next week.
After losing to British boxer James Dickens in a vacant International Boxing Organisation (IBO) featherweight title fight in Liverpool last October, Dlamini gets yet another opportunity to climb up the ratings in world boxing bodies.
Dlamini appears in the top 10 ratings in both the World Boxing Council (WBC) and the International Boxing Federation (IBF). The WBC rates him in eighth spot while he’s rated seventh by the IBF ratings.
“My main aim is to get back to winning ways and move up the world ratings. This is a come back fight for me after losing to Dickens in October last year. It’s not going to be an easy one because my opponent knows how to fight even though I believe that I’m going to beat him,” Dlamini remarked.
The 29-year-old Dlamini, who is originally from Welkom in the Free State, made it clear that he had enough rest after he didn’t rest before meeting Dickens. He met Dickens just two weeks after he had stopped Filipino boxer Jelbirt Gomera in Bloemfontein.
“I have had enough rest and ready to fight again. The break really helped me mentally and emotionally. Losing for the first time after seven years wasn’t easy to digest. But now I’m ready mentally, emotionally and physically,” Dlamini said.
Talara from Cebu City in the Philippines will go to the Dlamini fight on the back of two wins against his compatriots Jhunrille Castino in February and Crison Omayao in April this year.
Dlamini takes a professional record of 18 victories (10 knockouts), two losses and a draw to the fight while Talara has registered 16 wins (nine stoppages), eight defeats and a draw.
