In his quest to climb up and protect his world ratings, Sikho ‘Sequence’ Nqothole from Mthatha will take yet another step in his boxing career as he travels to Mexico in search of a win on foreign soil.
The 29-year-old Nqothole is scheduled to clash with unbeaten Mexican boxer Rene Calixto Babiano in a 10 rounds junior-bantamweight bout on Saturday, 25 May (Sunday, 26 May, South African time).
And Nqothole, who is trained by former SA bantamweight champion Phumzile ‘Sweet Chocolate’ Matyhila in Johannesburg, has made it clear that he’s not frightened by Calixto’s perfect record.
“This is going to be a 10 rounds bout. Initially, it was going to be a title fight, but they changed it,” Nqothole said.
Currently, Nqothole is rated 12th by the World Boxing Association (WBA), is in eighth spot in the International Boxing Federation (IBF) and the World Boxing Organisation (WBO) rates him in fifth spot.
On the other hand, Calixto from Guerrero in Mexico, who stopped two of his last five victims, is rated 11th by the WBA. Calixto has won all his 22 fights with nine of those victories coming from stoppages.
“I know that he has a good record. But that does not scare me. I’m not afraid of going there and do the job. I have been in the game for long now and have been out of the country many times as an amateur. The only thing that has changed now is the level,” Nqothole remarked.
“I feel that they are after my ratings. They are not going to get my ratings. What I know is that my hand is going to be raised that day.” – Monwabisi Jimlongo
