'Prepare for painful tutorial on boxing,' Okwiri warns Tanzanian opponent

Source: Capital FM Kenya
Author: Omondi Onyatta

NAIROBI, Kenya, March 6 - Kenya's Rayton Okwiri has warned Tanzania's Meshack Mwankemwa of a thorough beating when the two clash in a 10-round World Boxing Federation (WBF) middleweight title bout on March 23 at the Kenyatta International Conference Centre (KICC).

Okwiri said he has been training non-stop since his last bout and is in peak shape.

"I have been training ever since I fought last year. I am in peak shape...every day when I wake up, all I think about is training. I feel good about myself and looking forward to this fight. All that is left is to give him a thorough beating to ensure Kenyans walk away with the victory," Okwiri said.

The African Boxing Union (ABU) middleweight champion said he has done a background check on his opponent and is not quaking in his boots at the prospect of a hiding from the fellow East African.

"Yes, I have watched a number of his fights on YouTube and seen that he has fought in certain bouts in Kazakhstan. But, as I said, I have fought in Tanzania before and beat many of their boxers in their home soil. I am a four-time African champion and also an Olympian so I have the experience to deal with any threat he may pose. This will be a very brief bout...he will be lucky to go past one round," Okwiri said.

Equally bullish was Mwankemwa who said he is not fazed by his opponent's rich resume.

"I have faced more experienced fighters in my career before. I have fought in many countries against boxers who are much better than him so I am not fazed one bit. I am not the kind of fighter to be pushed around...in short, I have come for nothing but victory," the Tanzanian said.

It will be Mwankemwa's first bout on Kenyan soil.

The winner of the bout will earn the ticket to battle for the world title, set for later this year.

The bout is part of the the inaugural Nairobi Fight Night organized by Solid Rock Promotion in collaboration with AiWEx Sports and Kenya Professional Boxing Commission (KPBC).

Solid Rock Promotion official Mike Odongo said they have lined four more electrifying events of the same kind and called on corporates to partner with them to make it a success.