By ADRIAN MWANZA –
CATHERINE Phiri says she will resume training for her World Boxing Council (WBC) bantamweight gold defence title in two weeks time.
Catherine said she will start her preparations early even if her opponent is not yet known for mandatory defence title fight which should be fought within six months of winning the title.
The Zambian champion beat Mexican Yazmine Rivas on January 31 to etch her name in the record books after becoming the first African boxer to win the coveted title.
“I will resume my training in two weeks time in readiness for the defence of my WBC title even though my opponent has not yet been named,” Catherine said in an interview in Lusaka yesterday.
She said discipline was cardinal and that she was sticking to a strict diet which would keep her in shape to successfully defend her title.
Oriental Quarries Boxing Promotions (OQBP) manager Chris Malunga said Catherine’s opponent would be announced soon.
“We are going to inform the public who Catherine’s next opponent will be and how much would be required to stage the fight successfully,” he said.
Malunga said the boxer needed to be in shape because time was running out since a month had already elapsed from the stipulated six months.
He said Catherine needed to defend the title within the timeframe and that preparations were going on smoothly.
“The boxer will resume her training in two weeks in readiness for her defence of her WBC bantamweight gold title she recently won in Mexico,” he said.