No word on U.S fights

Top Fiji boxers Mikaele Ravalaca and Junior Binnu Singh are still waiting for confirmation on when they will fight in the United States (U.S).

On July 25, South Bay Boxing Promotions (SBBP) representative Chauncy Welliver and Zuffa Boxing talent scout Richard Fry were in Suva to watch the boxers compete at a Kings Boxing Promotions event.

When approached last Saturday, Ravalaca’s chief trainer, Nesta Ranuku, said there had been no update on the proposed November fight in the U.S.

Ranuku told SUNsports that Ravalaca had been told to expect a fight in the U.S, but the opportunity remained uncertain.

“To be honest, we really don’t know the plan from the US promoters or Zuffa. Right now, we don’t have any update,” he said.

Questions emailed to SBBP representative John Ellis remained unanswered when this edition went to press last night.

Ranuku believes Fiji needs stronger local promotional structures to develop boxers and create pathways to international competition.

He cited Australia’s No Limit promotion company as an example of how boxers could be developed and guided towards major international opportunities.

“If there’s a promoter in Fiji who can build a boxer like No Limit, then we can reach the world stage,” Ranuku said.

When contacted yesterday, Singh said he was still waiting for written confirmation of a proposed fight in the U.S, possibly in February or March next year.

“They came to us on that Kings Boxing Promotion fight night and said they came from USA to pick fighters here in Fiji to go and fight for Zuffa Boxing.

However, they were not actually from Zuffa Boxing. They had been sent by other people to come and see the fighters,” he told SUNsports.

Singh said he was later contacted and advised that he needed to build his professional record and gain greater international recognition before securing an opportunity with the promotion.

“They wanted us to build our records so we could fight in Zuffa. They said we needed world recognition and a better record, so they were looking at organising fights for us in the U.S,” he said.

Singh said he had no direct communication with Zuffa Boxing but had received a call a few weeks ago about a possible fight early next year.

“They were organising a fight for next year. There is no confirmed date yet,” he said.

Singh indicated that an opponent had been identified for an earlier proposed bout, but no opponent had been confirmed for the possible February or March fight.

“They are still looking for an opponent but they said that after that fight, if I win, they are going to give me the WBA (World Boxing Association) Gold title to fight for,” he said.

The WBA Gold title is a secondary championship tier introduced in 2019.

However, Singh stressed that he had not committed to the proposed fight in the U.S.

“I told them, I will let them know in January, if I am ready to go and fight in U.S. We are waiting for confirmation on who my opponent will be, when the fight will take place and all other details. Once they confirm everything in writing, then we can move forward and discuss it.”

Singh’s father and namesake, Binnu Singh Sr, said they had yet to receive an update on whether his son would fight in the U.S.

“At the moment, we are still waiting for the updates from the US boxing scouts and we have not received any information,” Singh said.

Boxing Commission of Fiji chairman Eroni Loganimoce said they were also waiting for the US promoters to provide an update on the opportunities for Ravalaca and Singh.

“We are still waiting for them to confirm when they can move across to fight in the US,” he said.

Loganimoce said the Boxing Commission of Fiji would continue communicating with the American scouts and was expecting further clarification on when the two boxers could travel.

“We will follow up with him,” he added.

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