Zvenyika turns boxing promoter

Zvenyika, who also runs a boxing academy in a makeshift gymnasium in Mbare, has created the Mosquito Boxing Promotions which is aimed at organising and staging tournaments throughout the country. So far, Zvenyika, popularly known as the Mosquito in boxing circles has managed to successfully stage one tournament.

He said his sponsors have promised to bankroll another tournament, adding that he was working on putting together the possible fights before he approaches the boxers he wants to take part in the competition that he said would also involve national title fights.

The former Africa Zone Six champion said he has been motivated by the current state of boxing in which boxers are going for a year or so without a fight which he says is not good for a sport that was the envy of many in Africa during its glory days of yesteryear when Zimbabwe produced two African champions Proud Kilimanjaro Chinembiri and Stix McLoud as well as three-time Commonwealth champion in Langton Schoolboy Tinago.

Zvenyika said boxers needed regular fights in order to keep them in shape for international engagements and that was the reason why he has decided to turn into a promoter, ‘ to give the boxers what they are there for.’ Boxers are there to fight. If they are not fighting, then there is no boxing. Our boxers need regular fights to keep them in shape so that they dont embarrass us when they fight against others from foreign countries, said Zvenyika International titles should start coming back to Zimbabwe.

He said it was disheartening that most of the promoters of yesteryear were no longer involved with the sport and that there had been no new companies coming up to promote the sport. Only two promoters Stalin Mau Mau and Boris Zneider are still involved with the sport which Zvenyika added was saddening for many who wanted to keep the sport afloat. I want to fill the gap that has been created by those promoters who have left the sport, concluded Zvenyika.

At one time, Zimbabwe had on top of Mau Mau other promoters like Phillip Chiyangwa, Lorraine Muringi of Ring Promotions and the late Jeff ‘Captain Fiasco’ Dube of Rampage Ring Promotions. But will Zvenyika get the confidence of this generation of boxers give his rather checkered career in which there were as many controversial incidents as there were finer achievements.

In 1988, he surprised all when he went to the United Kingdom and defeated Paul Weir to land the commonwealth title. He defended it twice before he ran over a policeman while driving without a licence. The offense got him a light community service sentence. But Zvenyika was not finished yet. In 2000, he won another Commonwealth title which he then lost in his first defence.

Then the tag of boxing’s bad boy returned when he tried to commit suicide following a domestic dispute, and was later jailed for eight months for stealing a neighbour’s radio. Before that in 1996, Zvenyika cheated an Australian village of money and other gifts after lying to them that his son had died back in Harare. He devised a plan with his wife that saw the wife sending a telegram informing Zvenyika in Salisbury, Australia, that his son had passed on.

Upon receiving the telegram, Zvenyika spread the news to the Salisbury community for whom he had won admirers with his boxing skills. As a sign of their sympathy, the Australians gave him money and other gifts only to discover that he had lied and they asked for their money back which of course they did not get. But Zvenyika says that is the past and wants to take boxing back to the top.