Female boxer of the year award winner Smangele “Smash” Hadebe will challenge for the World Boxing Council (WBC) silver flyweight title in August.
This was announced yesterday by her manager Colleen McAusland whose tiny little fighter from KwaThema in Springs won the most sought-after award at the International Convention Centre in Durban at the weekend.
BSA acting CEO Nsikayezwe Sithole announced that Hadebe together with International Boxing Federation junior flyweight male champion Sivenathi “The Special One” Nontshinga, who walked away with the same trophy, would each get R50,000.
The opportunity for Hadebe to challenge for the WBC silver belt resulted from her No.15 rating by the WBC’s ratings committee. It was due to her winning the ABU belt in February last year.
The ABU is affiliated with the WBC. “Smash is growing as a fighter and it makes me very happy she will be challenging for the WBC silver belt in August,” said McAusland.
The promise for a brighter future was when she won the female prospect of the year award in 2017. She won it again the following year to become the first female boxer here to achieve such recognition since professional women boxing was permitted in 2006.
Then in 2012 Hadebe won the SA title which she vacated after adding the ABU belt in her collection.
“This award [boxer of the year] gives me motivation to push harder and I will win the WBC silver belt,” she said. “I am improving as a fighter but credit goes to the team that I am associated with, especially my manager who makes things happen for me.”
She is trained by Vusi Mtolo who lost out to Khangelani Jack in the trainer of the year gong. That irked McAusland who was pipped by Damien Durandt in the manager's category.
“I am actually disappointed by the choice of winners in a few categories including ours,” said McAusland whose other fighter Gauteng middleweight championt Donjuan van Heerden won the male prospect of the year gong.
“Smash and Van Heerden are trained by Mtolo, yet he did not win the award; can you explain the criteria used? If it was not for the love I have for my boxers I would give up on boxing,” said McAusland, who was voted 2018 manager of the year award winner.
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