Zarika up for Ndegere test ahead of Ashley rematch

World Boxing Council (WBC) super bantamweight champion Fatuma Zarika is set to face off against Tanzania’s Asha Ndegere in an eight-round bout for the very first time on February 18 in an event dubbed Making a Champ.

The tournament, organized through collaboration between Las Vegas entity Bigger Than Life Entertainment and the Kenya Professional Boxing Commission will be hosted at The Carnivore Gardens and will see a mix of other fighters take to the ring.

A fierce rematch between Kenyan James Onyango and Ugandan Patrick Athuhairwe will also be on the cards with each seeking a welterweight win.

Zarika told Citizen Digital she had requested to be drawn in the main title as part of her preparations for her rematch with Jamaica’s Alicia Ashley on March 25.

“It will help me stay fit as I wait for my rematch with Ashley,” she said.

Zarika outboxed Ashley, the vintage Jamaican defending champion to win WBC super bantamweight title in October last year in Flint, Michigan, USA to become the first Kenyan woman professional boxer to hold a world title.

The two were set for a feisty rematch on February 4 but the clash was postponed to March 2 owing to a venue disagreement.

Zarika had pressed to have the match staged in Nairobi seeking home support and to entertain Kenyan fans but her opponent insisted otherwise.

“We haven’t found sponsors yet. It’s something we are working on and hope that by the time I take on Ndegere we will have found a company willing to fund my rematch.

“Frankly if six months elapse since the time I won this belt I will have to part with it because according to the rules of WBC I am supposed to defend the title within a period of six months after being crowned champion,” she added.

The Making a Champ tournament will also feature several high profile fighters including four-time world heavyweight champion Evander Holyfiel, Tony Weeks and Thomas ‘Hitman’ Hearns as well as Comedian Tk Kirkland.

There will also be five preliminary bouts hosting fighters from Kenya, South Africa, Malawi, Tanzania, Uganda and The USA.

-Report by Mwangi Githinji.

Tags:

Fatuma Zarika Boxing World Boxing Council (WBC) Alicia Ashley Asha Ndegere

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