Manyuchi to face unknown quantity
CHARLES MANYUCHI will now face Jose Agustin Julio Feria of Colombia in his first World Boxing Council welterweight silver title defence after the initial challenger, Damien Martin of France pulled out of the bout.
The 26-year-old Manyuchi is scheduled to fight his maiden first WBC sanctioned match in front of a home crowd at the Harare International Conference Center on October 14.
Manyuchi’s camp had been preparing for Martin, a 30-yearold WBC Francophone champion from Saint-Mallo but the Frenchman is reported to have pulled out of the fight.
It has now emerged that the boxer’s handlers , Oriental Quarries Boxing Promotions, have now settled for the South American.
The WBC recently hinted at a change in Manyuchi’s opponent and it has now been established that a 33-year-old lowly ranked boxer from Fundacion in Colombia is the new challenger.
Oriental Quarries Boxing Promotions manager Chris Malunga was not immediately available for a comment but a source revealed that Feria, who is ranked 470 in the world, will be heading to Harare next month.
“What I can confirm is that Manyuchi is no longer fighting Martin, his new opponent is from Colombia and his name is Jose Agustin Julio Feria,” said an impeccable source.
Manyuchi could not be drawn into revealing much about the new opponent.
“My brother I can’t talk about such issues, they are handled by my manager. If there is a new opponent then to me it is neither here nor there because I am prepared to face anyone,” he said.
The Zimbabwean boxing star has already intensified his training under his Zambian coach Mike “Weaver” Zulu at the Oriental Quarries boxing camp in Lusaka.
Manyuchi will be a firm favourite against Julio Feria who is ranked 448 places below the Zimbabwean despite carrying a record of 21 wins, three losses and one draw.
Julio Feria is the fifth best welterweight boxer in Colombia and is rated lower than countryman Davis Caceres, who was knocked out by Manyuchi after only two rounds in a WBC International welterweight title fight on November 22, 2014.
Should Manyuchi sail past Julio Feria, a rematch with Russian champion Dmitry Mikhaylenko is on the cards.
Manyuchi defeated Mikhaylenko last May to clinch a welterweight silver title left vacant by Amir Khan of Great Britain.