Mugerwa plotting second KO in comeback pro bout
Mugerwa (LEFT) seeks better fortunes as a pro than he enjoyed in amateur ranks. PHOTO/ISMAIL KEZAALA
What you need to know:
- Ready. Mugerwa, one of the three big names under the A & B stable draws his confidence from the thorough training he has endured with colleagues.
Before Olympian Catherine Nanziri takes on Tanzanian Sadra Mohamed, this Friday, in the main fight on the return of the Boxing Survival Series Stanley Mugerwa will have to first knockout Regan Mutoni, according to his prediction of their super welterweight six-rounder at PTC Bar and Restaurant in Bulenga, Mityana Road.
Mugerwa, aka “The Boxing Santa,” marked his professional debut with the stoppage of Ibra Mukiibi at the Phillip Omondi Stadium on April 1 and would not like to go the whole distance against Mutoni, a debutant.
“He’s a cool guy and he’s the one who dared me for this fight,” Mugerwa told Monitor in an interview after training.
“But I think I will stop him around the third or fourth round.”
Mugerwa, one of the three big names under the A & B stable, who are on the cards, draws his confidence from the thorough training he has endured with colleagues.
“We work really hard; three times a day: 5km of road work in the morning, several rounds of pad work in the afternoon and more pad work and bag work in the evening,” he explains, adding, “As professionals, gym work is also a must. Sparring with colleagues Joshua Male and Charles Zziwa has also made me better.”
The struggles
Mugerwa’s primary dream was to represent Uganda at major international events. Unfortunately, he did not appear at even one.
Groomed at Zzana Boxing Club before joining A & B academy, mostly fought at welterweight, which has been the most competitive division recently, Mugerwa needed to dig deeper, be lucky or wait longer to get a national slot past the likes of Nasser Bukenya, Muzamir Kakande, David Ochan, David Ssemuju, Musa Shadir Bwogi, among others.
Also, unlike the others, Mugerwa had the necessary distraction of an academic career. But when he accomplished his degree in Tourism and Hotel Management, in 2018, he wanted to fight for his space in the boxing arena.
Fast forward to December 2019 when he impressed on his way to the finals of the national Olympic trials. But in January 2020, Mugerwa did not ask Shadir enough questions and lost the bid for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, where Shadir, also regarded an underachiever by then, would appear.
Forward again to 2021. Mugerwa impressed at the so-called national trials, the first national amateur event since the Olympic trials in January 2020. He reached the semis of the light middleweight alongside Tokyo 2020 Olympian Ssemuju.
But the two joined other elites to reject the contracts, a mandatory requirement for the inaugural Uganda Boxing Champions League
Almost 28, Mugerwa took the bittersweet decision against the contracts that could tie him with Uganda Boxing Federation (UBF) for at least four years.
However, he retained some hopes of featuring at the Commonwealth Games. False hope because the federation went punitive, and locked out all the ‘rebels’.
“I felt that was my peak in the amateurs but I couldn’t enslave myself in something I couldn’t understand,” Mugerwa said. “I had to move on and I have no regrets turning pro. The dream is on.”
