Oosthuizen promises to be mover and shaker of cruiserweight division

THE return to boxing of errant child Thomas Oosthuizen has invoked a sense of anticipation in the sport, with tantalising bouts suddenly looking possible.

Oosthuizen, whose escapades with the law is well documented, appeared to have mended his ways as he declared in a Golden Gloves Promotion (GGP) presser this week that he is back in training and is already targeting big names in the cruiserweight division.

One such name Oosthuizen called out is Thabiso Mchunu, even though the latter has a scheduled fight at Emperors Palace next Saturday.

Mchunu will take on Ukrainian Ricards Bolotniks in a GGP show dubbed ‘Bombs Away’; a fight which has now become a must-win for the KwaZulu-Natal-born southpaw if he harbours aspiration of responding to Oosthuizen’s call out.

The pair was scheduled to meet, but Oosthuizen’s wayward lifestyle reared its ugly head, prompting GGP boss Rodney Berman to shelve the plans of the bout.

Berman confirmed that the latest rededication Oosthuizen is showing had made him reconsider the fight.

“His return is good news for boxing in the land because his talent is undeniable,” said Berman.

“Now his name can be discussed in big fights such as the one against Mchunu.”

But Berman was quick to point out that before the fight can even be considered both boxers would need to keep on the straight and narrow.

Mchunu now needs to beat Bolotniks to keep the hopes of the fight against Oosthuizen alive.

Coincidentally Mchunu also badly needs a positive result to breathe life to his own career.

The talented left-hander was destined for big bouts in the US, where he even signed with promotional powerhouse Main Events. But a spate of disappointing results has brought him to the bottom of the ladder.

Berman is giving him another chance to get back to the top by matching him against the Ukrainian.

A bout between Mchunu and Oosthuizen, a former IBO super-middleweight king, would bring local boxing to a standstill with excitement.

Oosthuizen, who is also a left-hander, still boasts an impressive fight record of a single loss in 30 bouts, despite part-timing the sport. At the presser he displayed the bravado that made him one of the top boxers in the land.

“I want to fight everybody, including Mchunu and Kevin Lerena,” said Oosthuizen.

Lerena has just returned from Azerbaijan, where he saw off the gutsy challenge of Roman Golovashchenko to retain his IBO cruiserweight title.