Lerena faces Roman warfare in lion’s den
IBO cruiserweight champion Kevin Lerena has arrived in Azerbaijan for his highly anticipated title defence against Roman Golovashchenko tomorrow.
The South African southpaw will be fighting in the country for the first time and according to promoter Rodney Berman, he is unfazed by the task at hand.
“Kevin is relaxed because he knows what this fight means to him,” said Berman.
“Although he will be fighting in the country for the first time, he is not worried by any raucous reception because he knows that in the ring it will be him and Golovashchenko.”
Lerena will come to the fight on the back of his victory over Ukrainian Dmytro Kucher in April on points.
The 26-year-old is fast becoming one of the best fighters in the starstudded cruiserweight division – and a win over Golovashchenko will further cement his status among the elite class.
Sporting a single loss which he avenged, in 21 bouts, Lerena is expected to return home with his world championship belt still safely tucked in his luggage.
However, he will not have it easy as Golovashchenko will bank on home advantage and the 16-bout winning streak which he has been enjoying since suffering the odd defeat in 2008. On paper, both boxers will be evenlymatched, although the South African has fought better opposition confirmed by his lofty ratings in the world sanctioning bodies.
Berman is hoping that Lerena wins in order to stand a good chance of making it into the World Boxing Super Series (WBSS) if it returns, in the cruiserweight division.
“There will be endless opportunities for Kevin if he wins but, most importantly, he will establish himself as one of the stars of the division.”
Despite a stint in rugby, Lerena has taken to the fight game like a duck to water with his southpaw stance often throwing opponents off their stride.
Not an easy boxer to hit, incorporating lightning speed footwork into his arsenal, Lerena is also a good listener, constantly inclining an ear to rasping instructions from trainer Sean Smith.
“We are hoping that he puts it all together and returns home triumphantly,” he said.
However, again, it will not be easy fighting against the Latvian-born German, who boasts a high knockout percentage.
The 30-year-old has scored 17 knockouts with only two of his bouts going the distance – against a single loss.
He shares something in common with Lerena, in terms of opponent Gogita Gorgiladze of Georgia, who lost to both combatants.
But Lerena knocked the Georgian out in three rounds in their clash in September 2014 while Golovashchenko needed six more rounds to do the same two years later.