Star of Africa rematch between Makabu and Mchunu + WBC Stats
By James Blears
WBC cruiserweight champion Junior Ilunga Makabu from the Congo, defends his title for the second time, in a mega-bout rematch against Thabiso Mchunu on January 29th at the Packard Music Hall in Warren Ohio.
The southpaws clashed for the first time in May 2015. On that occasion it was an action packed eliminator for the WBC title and a fight to remember. Thabiso dominated the first half of the bout, peppering a slow starting Ilunga with accurate right jabs, combinations and uppercuts. He launched an onslaught in the third rocking the taller man, who was glad to hear the bell to end the round.
But it proved to be a fight of two distinct halves containing multi segments. After the sixth, resilient tough as nails Ilunga came into his own, and started to force the pace. Thabiso says that he initially found Ilunga an easy target to hit, went all out for the KO, didn`t pace himself and gassed.
Ilunga dished out severe punishment in the ninth and tenth and then closed the show with a peach of a left uppercut felling Thabiso who couldn`t beat the count. Six years later, the two are standing face to face, poised to launch a second cannonade of fireworks in a Don King Promotion, which should prove explosive and memorable.
Ilunga aged thirty four has built a record of 28-2 with 25 KO`s. He lost his pro debut against Khayeni Hlungwane via a first round TKO. From there he progressed impressively with a string of KO`s. We had to wait eight years before his next defeat at the hands of Tony Bellew for the vacant WBC title on Tony`s home turf of Goodison Park, Liverpool. The soccer stadium of his beloved Everton. This followed Ilunga`s victory over Thabiso.
Ilunga dropped Tony in round one with a cracking left hook, which summersaulted him backwards. In the words of Tony`s Trainer Dave Coldwell, Tony got greedy and was caught. But Tony made amends in the third, dropping Ilunga with a massive right, to close the show with a KO.
Ilunga patiently regrouped and went to Russia to win the WBC vacant silver title with a TKO over Dmitry Kudryashov. Then a MD win over Aleksei Papin and the next fight was against Poland`s Michal Cieslak for the vacant WBC title.
Michal started strong and had Ilunga in trouble in round three, but Illunga again showed his ability to reverse adversity, knocking his opponent down in the fourth. He got stronger as the fight progressed in front of his adoring fans in Kinshasa and won a UD. And in his first title defense, also in Kinshasa he TKO`d Olanrewaja Durodola. So now it`s time to fight Thabiso Mchunu, all over again.
Thabiso Mchunu has been in Mexico City for ten days, with his Coach Sean Smith and his team, training in the White Collar Gym on Palmas Avenue. They`ve secured visas from the US Embassy here to smooth their journey to Ohio.
Thabiso`s pro debut was in 2007. He`s built a record of 28 fights with 23 wins including 13 KO`s and 5 losses. In his second fight after the defeat by Ilunga he fought the mighty Oleksandr Usyk, who put him down in the sixth and twice in the ninth for a KO victory.
Thabiso`s nickname is The Rock, because he`s overcome adversity to become the number one challenger. He lost a close MD to Thomas Oosthuizen and then in his next fight defeated him by UD. He went to Russia to defeat Denis Lebedev by UD to win the vacant WBC silver title, and back to Russia again to defeat Evgeny Tishchenko by UD, to earn his opportunity at the Absolute title against Ilunga.
Thabiso says he`s been in training camp for four months to fight Ilunga and has prepared to go twelve hard rounds. He`s five feet eleven inches tall and has a seventy two and a half inch reach. Ilunga is six feet tall and has a seventy four inch reach. Somehow, they look taller and shorter than that?
In their first fight, both stood toe to toe and swopped a lot of very hard punches. It`s likely they will also fight at relatively short range this time and it`ll be another slugfest. Ilunga will look to start a lot faster in this one, while Thabiso will conserve his stamina. Both favor going to the body and throwing uppercuts upstairs. Like their first encounter, it`s unlikely to go the distance.
The obvious immediate focus is on each other. But the winner might have an opportunity for an even bigger payday. At the World Boxing Council Convention in Mexico City, Saul Canelo`s Manager Eddy Reynoso gained permission for the Flame haired wonder, to fight against Ilunga. This might be on Cinco de Mayo, Ilunga comes through this test of fire. Canelo is keen to become the first Mexican boxer to win world titles in five weight categories. There`s also talk of Canelo possibly fighting undefeated WBC middleweight champion Jermall Charlo, who`d move up to super middleweight for the challenge.
If the Makabu Vs Mchunu fights proves to be a grueling test…and it will, May seems but a short time for the victor to prepare for Canelo. Stranger things have happened in boxing. Right now it`s not on the mind, but quite possibly in the back of it.
The current focus is January 29th. It`s going to be a great fight. The WBC cruiserweight crown is on the line. Whoever wins will be the Star of Africa and the Globe.
Don King Return to Greatness – Homecoming at Last Official PPV Live Stream:
https://www.fite.tv/watch/don-king-homecoming-at-last/2pap8/
WBC STATISTICS
WBC Cruiserweight World Championship
January 29, 2022 / Packard Music Hall, Warren, Ohio, USA
DON KING PRODUCTIONS PRESENTS:
ILUNGA “Junior” MAKABU (Congo)
WBC Cruiserweight World Champion, 2nd Title defense
Age: 34 / Date of birth: November 8, 1987
Birthplace: Kananga, Democratic Republic of The Congo
Record: 28-2, 25 KOs / Total rounds: 141 / World championship fights: 2-1
Height: 6’0″ – 183cm / Reach: 74″ – 188cm / Stance: Left-handed
THABISO MCHUNU (South Africa)
Ranked WBC No. 1 at Cruiserweight
Age: 33 / Date of birth: March 4, 1988
Birthplace: KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa
Record: 23-5, 13 KOs / Total rounds: 197 /
Height: 5′ 11″ – 180 cm / Reach: 72 .5″ – 184 / Stance: Left-handed
WBC CRUISERWEIGHT WORLD CHAMPIONS
1. Marvin Camel (US) 1980
2. Carlos de Leon (P. Rico) 1980 – 1982
3. S.T. Gordon (US) 1982 – 1983
4. Carlos de Leon (P. Rico) * 1983 – 1985
5. Alfonzo Ratliff (US) 1985
6. Bernard Benton (US) 1985 – 1986
7. Carlos de Leon (P. Rico) * 1986 – 1988
8. Evander Holyfield (US) 1988
9. Carlos de Leon (P. Rico) * 1989 – 1990
10. Massimiliano Duran (Italy) 1990 – 1991
11. Anaclet Wamba (France) 1991 – 1995
12. Marcelo Dominguez (Arg) 1995 – 1998
13. Juan Carlos Gomez (Cuba) 1998 – 2002
14. Wayne Braithwaite (Guyana) 2002 – 2005
15. Jean-Marc Mormeck (France) 2007
16. O’Neil Bell (US) 2006 – 2007
17. Jean Marc Mormeck (France)* 2007
18. David Haye (UK) 2007 – 2008
19. Giacobbe Fragomeni (Italy) 2008 – 2009
20. Zsolt Erdei (Hungary) 2008 – 2010
21. Krzystof Wlodarczyk (Poland) 2010 – 2014
22. Grigory Drozd (Russia) 2014 – 2015
23. Tony Bellew (UK) 2016 – 2017
24. Mairis Briedis (Latvia) 2017 – 2018
25. Oleksandr Usyk (Ukraine) 2018 – 2019
26. Ilunga Makubu (Congo) 2020 –
* Regained
WBC TOP 10 CRUISERWEIGHT WORLD CHAMPIONS
1. Evander Holyfield (US)
2. Oleksandr Usyk (Ukraine)
3. Juan Carlos Gomez (Cuba-Germany)
4. David Haye (GB)
5. Tony Bellew (GB)
6. Mairis Briedis (Latvia)
7. Zsolt Erdei (Hungary)
8. Krzystof Wlodarczyk (Poland)
9. Jean-Marc Mormeck (France)
10. Anaclet Wamba (France)
GENERAL INFORMATION ON THE CRUISERWEIGHT DIVISION IN WBC HISTORY
76 cruiserweight world championship bouts have been held in the history of the WBC.
22 world champions have been recognized by the WBC, of whom only two have regained the title: Carlos de Leon (Puerto Rico) three times, Jean Marc Mormeck (France) one time.
MEMORABLE WBC CRUISERWEIGHT WORLD CHAMPIONSHIP FIGHTS
Jan. 31, 2020 Ilunga Makubu W12 Michal Cieslak – Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of The Congo
Nov. 10, 2018 Oleksandr Usyk TKO8 Tony Bellew – Manchester, England
July 21, 2018 Oleksandr Usyk W12 Murat Gassiev – Moscow, Russia
Jan. 27, 2018 Oleksandr Usyk W12 Mairis Briedis – Riga, Latvia
Apr. 1, 2017 Mairis Briedis W12 Marco Huck – Westfalenhalle, Germany
May 29, 2016 Tony Bellew TKO3 Ilunga Makabu – Liverpool, England
Sep. 27, 2014 Grigory Drozd W12 Krzysztof Wlodarczyk – Moscow, Russia
May 15, 2010 Krzysztof Wlodarczyk TKO8 Giacobbe Fragomeni – Lodz, Poland
Oct. 24, 2008 Giacobbe Fragomeni TW8 Rudolf Kraj – Milan, Italy
Mar. 8, 2008 David Haye TKO2 Enzo Maccarinelli – London, England
Jan. 7, 2006 O’Neil Bell KO10 Jean Marc Mormeck – New York, New York
Apr. 2, 2005 Jean Marc Mormeck W12 Wayne Braithwaite – Worcester, Massachusetts
Oct. 11, 2002 Wayne Braithwaite TKO10 Vincenzo Cantatore – Lombardia, Italy
Feb. 21, 1998 Juan Carlos Gomez W12 Marcelo Fabian Dominguez – Buenos Aires, Argentina
July 25, 1995 Marcelo Fabian Dominguez TKO9 Akim Tafir – Pyrénées-Atlantiques, France
July 20, 1991 Anaclet Wamba TKO11 Massimiliano Duran – Palermo, Sicily
July 27, 1990 Massimiliano Duran WDQ11 Carlos DeLeon – Capo d’Orlando, Sicily
May 17, 1989 Carlos DeLeon TKO9 Sammy Reeson – London, England
Apr. 9, 1988 Evander Holyfield TKO8 Carlos DeLeon – Las Vegas, Nevada
Feb. 24, 1982 Carlos DeLeon TKO8 Marvin Camel – Atlantic City, New Jersey
Mar. 31, 1980 Marvin Camel W15 Mate Parlov – Las Vegas, Nevada
Dec. 8, 1979 Marvin Camel D15 Mate Parlov – Split, Croatia
WBC Stats by Luis Medina
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