By Monwabisi Jimlongo
Bangile Nyangani won’t surrender his South African minimumweight title when he squares up against challenger Siyakholwa Kuse next month, his trainer Alan Toweel has said.
Nyangani will attempt to make a successful third defence of his time during a rematch against Kuse at the East London International Convention Centre (ICC) on Sunday, 2 July. Mthatha-born Nyangani dethroned Kuse at the Nutting Hall in East London in July 2021.
“Preparations are going very well. We just can’t lose this fight, that’s it. The way he’s been training, the way he’s been sparring, he’s gonna be in another level. He’s gonna be better prepared than he was during the first fight,” Toweel commented.
This fight between the two boxers has been postponed more than four times since the beginning of the year and Toweel believes the postponements were just unfortunate.
“Unfortunately, Bangile was supposed to have had this fight in January. It was postponed to February, then to March, April and June. Now it’s happening on the second of July. It’s frustrating for the challenger, also very frustrating for us as Bangile has been training since December last year,” Toweel said.
With Nyangani rated in the top 15 by the four biggest world boxing bodies, Toweel said that a loss is the last thing in their minds.
“We are very confident with this fight. Bangile wants to show that he’s one of the best talented fighters today. He’s rated very highly in all governing boxing organisations. He’s number four in the WBA, seventh in the WBC, 10th in the IBF and 11th in the WBO. He’s gonna beat Kuse, we have to. We have no choice,” Toweel remarked.
