It looks like South African junior-flyweight champion, Siseko ‘Panda’ Teyisi, will close the year with a fight against former world title contender, Junior Leandro Zarate, from Argentina.
Ink Sport has gathered that Zarate, who lost to Mpumelelo Tshabalala in an International Boxing Organisation (IBO) junior-flyweight title fight in September 2024, might return to South Africa to face the unbeaten Teyisi from Mdantsane.
Teyisi had a very tough fight five months ago as he battled to a points win over Neel Jacamos from the Philippines in a vacant World Boxing Council (WBC) Youth junior-flyweight title contest held at the Jan Smuts Stadium in KuGompo City.
Initially, Teyisi’s handlers had looked at matching him against former WBC junior-flyweight champion, Knockout CP Freshmart whose real name is Thammanoon Niyomtrong. However, the idea was abandoned after it became clear that bringing Niyomtrong from Thailand to South Africa would cost an arm and a leg.
“Our plans as Team Teyisi are to focus on international fights. That’s why we are looking for a fight on the first week of December even though we have not decided on the opponent yet,” Teyisi’s manager, Bongani Bozo, said.
Teyisi has been busy at the gym under the watchful eye of erstwhile International Boxing Federation (IBF) junior-featherweight and International Boxing Organisation (IBO) featherweight champion, Vuyani ‘The Beast’ Bungu, who’s being assisted by his younger brother, Dudu Bungu.
Meanwhile, the South African junior-flyweight champion is the only SA boxer, who enjoys being rated by all four of the world’s top boxing bodies.
Teyisi is 13th in the WBC, rated 12th by the World Boxing Association (WBA), fourth in the International Boxing Federation (IBF) and is sitting in 15th spot in the World Boxing Organisation (WBO) ratings.
On the other hand, Zarate is rated seventh by the WBC and 11th by the WBO in the strawweight division. – Monwabisi Jimlongo
