Baeti faces German boxer in lightweight bout

CHIPPA LEGODIMO
Staff Writer | Wednesday February 22, 2012 00:00

 

Baeti’s trainer, Larona Francis said the former national team boxer is scheduled to face Barakat in Gaborone at a date yet to be confirmed.Baeti will fight on the same day and venue as Herbert Nkabiti at a city venue still to be announced.The two boxers are currently training at Sir Seretse Khama Barracks (SSKB) in Mogoditshane.

'I am working hard on the two boxers because these would be their first big fights. They have to be in tip top condition on the day. I have been impressed with their level of commitment, they are really itching to get into the ring,' Francis told Mmegi Sport.The 29-year-old Baeti is optimistic about his chances of flooring the German.'I have learnt much in South Africa, fought some difficult fights which were not title bouts and I believe now is the time for me to go a step higher.'Baeti said that of the 22 fights he has fought since turning professional in 2004 he has only lost twice and drawn once, registering a single technical knockout (TKO) in the process.Although he would be fighting a relatively unknown boxer, Baeti was confident of doing well against his European rival. The possibility of his opponent undergoing professional training, which would include a strict diet, does not bother Baeti.

'It is about my own discipline. With the little resources at my disposal, I will not disappoint the nation. I have been taught what to avoid as a professional boxer and how my routine should be, building up to a fight and I believe I can do it. I do not need someone to always remind me of these things. After all, this is about my own career and what I want to achieve,' Baeti said.Meanwhile, Nkabiti’s opponent in the continental light welterweight bout will be Namibia’s Pohamba Mandume.