After attempts to expedite interviews for American visas for Bernie Pailman, Larry Wainstein and Hayden Jones were abandoned, Shannon Strydom will now beef up Team Cafu.
Strydom leaves South Africa for USA on Sunday evening to team up with boxing trainer Colin ‘Nomakanjani’ Nathan and his boxer Phumelela ‘The Truth’ Cafu ahead of the World Boxing Organisation (WBO) junior-bantamweight champion’s fight against Jesse ‘Bam’ Rodriguez.
Cafu is set to trade leather with the reigning World Boxing Council (WBC) and Ring Magazine junior-bantamweight champion at the Ford Centre in Star Frisco, Dallas, in Texas next Saturday (Sunday, South African time).
“I’m flying tonight at 21h00,” Strydom, who trains his boxers at Hot Box Gym and has been working with Nathan since 2022, confirmed on Sunday morning.
Nathan said about the failure to secure visas for Pailman, Wainstein and Jones: “I spoke to Larry and told him that we couldn’t wait anymore. We did think that this might be an issue. We initially tried to get their interviews expedited, but we were declined. Their appointments are in August, and that’s too late. Larry and I discussed this three weeks ago, and we always had Shannon on standby because he has a valid visa for plan B.”
Natha added: “I’ve also asked Dee-Jay Kriel to fly in to Dallas and assist. At worst, I’ll do the cuts if need be and I’m honestly not concerned, as I’ve been doing cuts since I was 12 years old. Or we’ll get a cutman for the contest.”
Meanwhile, Strydom will be joining Nathan’s long-time friend Mike Altamura from Australia and Kriel, who was in the corner with Nathan when Hekkie Budler shocked Mexican boxer Elwin Soto in Mexico in June 2022.
