India’s undefeated Golden Boy, Vijender Singh will face the toughest test of his professional career when he faces Former World Champion and current Intercontinental Super Middleweight Champion Francis Cheka from Tanzania on 17th December 2016 at Thyagaraj Sports Complex, New Delhi.
The fight will be telecasted live on the Star Sports Network this time as well; ticket sales will also commence soon.
The 34-year-old experienced boxer from Tanzania is a veteran of 43 fights with 32 wins including 17 KO’s and has tested himself against top super-middleweight talent including WBA World Champion Fedor Chudinov from Russia and WBC International Champion Matthew Mecklin from the UK. The talented boxer has racked up 300 gruelling rounds under his belt in the 16 years of his career compared to Vijender Singh’s 27 and has no fear fighting in India.
Francis Cheka was formerly a World Champion, and currently, he holds the Intercontinental Super Middleweight Championship title, which he won earlier this year in February against Geard Ajetovic who hails from Serbia.
Indian superstar Vijender Singh has made an explosive start to his pro career in the paid ranks by blowing away his first seven opponents in just 27 rounds. Cheka is Vijender’s most experienced opponent to date and will prove a stern test for the big-hitting Indian boxer. Vijender currently has a record of seven out of seven wins with 6 knockouts.
Undefeated Vijender claimed his first WBO Asia Pacific Super Middleweight title at the Thyagaraj Stadium in July this year against Australian Kerry Hope. The Indian knockout merchant is now looking to defend his title in front of his home crowd by knocking out Cheka in the early rounds.
Cheka predicts first round knockout
Speaking about his next fight, Francis Cheka said, “I am ready to give this kid a lesson of boxing…I will come to India…No turning back…No surrender. I have heard a lot about this Indian boxer and there’s a lot of hype around him, I just can’t wait to be the one to put him in his place. I know he trains in Manchester, UK, but it will be a great fun to beat Indian lad in his own country and take away his title.”
“If you see my record, I have a total of 17 knockouts, I have played way more rounds than he has, I am sure I will be able to knock him out in the first round itself.”
“I have seen his previous fights, he has fought absolutely nobody so far and I am sure he will get rid of facing me in the ring. The day he will meet me in the ring, he won’t have a reply for anything I throw at him and once I start landing my punches at him it be will game over for India’s golden boy. There’s no doubt in my mind that I will knockout Vijender,” added Cheka.
After defeating Kerry Hope, just a few months back at the capital, Vijender Singh has been away from India and training hard in Manchester for his title defence fight next month. IOS Boxing Promotions and Queensberry Promotion’s maiden voyage to India proved to be a booming success. The event was received very well by the media and got tremendous reaction on social media from not only the fans but also known figures from the sports and entertainment world.
The undefeated champion has 7 wins under his pro-boxing belt and is looking for yet another win against Francis Cheka. The last win also put Vijender Singh in the top ten of the WBO rankings.
I am confident, says Vijender
On fighting Cheka, Vijender commented, “Cheka is a highly experienced boxer, he has many bouts under his belt, but none of this demotivates me. I am training harder to match up to his level and hoping for another win. Once again my fight will be at my home ground, just like last time the support that I got from the crowd was overwhelming and I am sure there will be more people who will come out to support me.”
“I am confident of my win; I feel my stance is becoming better with every training session that I am undergoing. My trainer also feels that my punches are stronger than before and he has also put me under high-intensity training. It’s a matter of my title this time, I am sure of protecting my title with as much pride as I won it. I am going to leave no stone unturned to make sure my title stays with me,” added Vijender.
Neerav Tomar, Promoter, IOS Boxing Promotions, who is the man responsible for introducing Vijender into the world of professional boxing, is ever more excited for this next stint of his organisation. He spoke on the occasion, “Just like last time, this time around also I am confident of a houseful on the fight night. People came out in large numbers to support their favourite boxing sensation; the response from the media as well as the social media was overwhelming. As far as Vijender is concerned, I am sure he will put up a tough fight against Francis Cheka, and come out as a clear winner.”
Lee Beard, trainer of Singh, said: "We have been working on Vijender's strength and power in the gym and he is punching a lot harder. I can already see the benefits of the high-intensity training sessions we have been putting him and everyone will see an even better Vijender on December 17th.”
“Of all the fighters I have trained, he is one of the best when it comes to learning; he is an extremely quick learner. He will be prepared and ready to defend his title in style," Beard added.
