WBA World minimumweight champion Hekkie “The Hexecutioner” Budler (29-1), the 5’1” fireball from Johannesburg, South Africa, has been elevated to Super Champion by the WBA Championships Committee.
He is the first South African fighter to receive that designation.
“The Hexecutioner” won the vacant WBA World minimumweight title in March 2014 when he scored a first-round KO over 21-4 Karlius Diaz at Emperors Palace, Kempton Park, Gauteng, South Africa.
He has successfully defended his title four times, most recently in September 2015 with a decision over Simphiwe Khonco.
According to WBA President Gilberto Jesus Mendoza, “It is the decision of the Championships Committee—based on Rule C.18—to elevated Hekkie Budler to the status of Super Champion because he met the requirements with four successful defenses and a great record.”
Twenty-seven-year-old Budler will make the fifth defense of his WBA title, his first as Super Champion, when he faces Byron “Gallito” Rojas (16-2-3, 1 NC), from Matagalpa, Nicaragua, who is ranked #10 by the WBA, on Rodney Berman’s Golden Gloves tournament at Emperors Palace on March 19.
The winner of the fight will make a mandatory defense against the winner of the WBA interim championship fight between undefeated Knockout CP Freshmart (11-0), from Surin, Thailand, and Carlos Buitrago (28-1-1), from Managua, Nicaragua, who is ranked #2 by the WBA.
In the co-main event, WBA Pan African welterweight champion Paul Kamanga (18-0), fighting out of Johannesburg but originally from of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, makes the first defense of his title against Roman Belaev (14-1), from Halle an der Saale, Sachsen-Anhalt, Germany, by way of Gusev, Russia.
Also on the card, South African super lightweight champion Grant Fourie (16-7-1) fights a rematch against Warren Joubert (23-4-5), “The Warrior” from Johannesburg, Gauteng, South Africa. At stake is the interim WBA Pan African super lightweight title.
This article was penned by the author who is not related to the WBA and the statements, expressions or opinions referenced herein are that of the author alone and not the WBA.
