If things go as planned this country could have not one but two world title fights in the not too distant future.
According to information reaching Stabroek Sport, former world boxing champion Gairy `Superman’ St Clair is looking to stage two world title fights here.
“Gairy St Clair, the former world boxing champion and household name of the 90’s is looking to stage two world title fights possibly at the Guyana National Stadium or any other suitable venue,” a source close to the fighter told this newspaper recently.
“The boxers St Clair has in mind are Elton Dharry and Dexter `De Kid’ Marques,” the source added.
Stabroek Sport reached out to the Australia-based St Clair for a comment but calls to his cell phone went unanswered.
Dharry, who is based in the USA, is the current holder of the World Boxing Council FECARBOX super flyweight title.
Dharry lost in controversial fashion to Andrew Moloney in a battle for the Interim World Boxing Association super flyweight title in November of 2019.
Apart from the FECARBOX title, Dharry holds a slew of titles including the national bantamweight title, the WBC Caribbean bantamweight title, the IBF Intercontinental title and the WBU Americas bantamweight title.
According to the source Dharry could easily become Guyana’s next world champion, adding that St Clair is well poised to deliver that title fight for Guyanese boxing fans once the COVID-19 virus is in the rear view mirror.
“St Clair is well poised to deliver a world title fight for Dharry which could easily be the biggest fight in the history of professional boxing in this country,” the source said.
“As a former world boxing champion and now a famous boxing trainer in Australia, he has all the right connections to deliver,” the source added.
Dharry has in the past described his defeat to Moloney as the biggest disappointment of his career and the source feels that the motivation of a world title shot might just be the shot in the arm the USA-based Guyanese needs to rise to the occasion and give Guyanese boxing fans its next world title. “My biggest disappointment was having the world title stolen from me,” Dharry was quoted as saying in another section of the media.
Flyweight Marques, who has a career of 19 fights, 17 wins with two losses, has not fought since January 2018 when he pounded out a unanimous decision over Dionis Martinez at the Cliff Anderson Sports Hall
His only two losses (both knockouts) came against quality fighters in Dharry and Leon `Hurry Up’ Moore and he has defeated seasoned campaigners such as Orlan Rogers, Carlton Skeete and Paul Lewis.
He was the headline fighter at the Guyana Boxing Board of Control’s `Not in My House’ card against Colombian Jose Antonio Jiminez but the fight did not come off and he has not fought since.
St Clair, who won the IBF and IBO junior lightweight titles when he defeated five-time world champion Cassius Baloyi in 2006 at the Emperors’ Palace, Kempton Park, South Africa, has become a shrewd trainer according to reports after retiring from the sport with a record of 45 fights, 12 losses and two draws.
He, like Dharry, is confident that Guyanese boxers can once again climb the pinnacle of the sport, said the source.
“Yes, Guyanese fighters can fight for a world title. I believe if they fight at a high level and they have experienced trainers to help them get there. I believe Peter Abdul (President of the GBBC) is in a good position to make that happen,” Dharry told the Kaieteur News following his defeat to Moloney.
Maybe the time is ripe for Guyana to have another World boxing champion.
