Former world champion Deejay Kriel is returning home from the United States. Picture: Gallo Images
One of South African boxing’s popular “little big men” Deejay Kriel has decided that there is no place like home.
The former International Boxing Federation (IBF) strawweight world champion (16-2-1- 8 knockouts), who made the bold decision to up and leave his country of birth in 2018 to chase his boxing dreams in the USA under trainer Kenny Adams, is back permanently.
Thirsting for action after a prolonged period of inactivity in the US, Kriel had no hesitation taking his career forward by re-joining trainer Colin Nathan’s Hotbox Gym in Savoy, Johannesburg.
At 26 years old – still a baby in boxing terms – he remains a very marketable fighter and enjoys a large following in this country.
As an added bonus, there will be no shortage of quality sparring partners for the pint-sized warrior, with some of the best local fighters in his weight class, including highly-rated Sivenathi Nontshinga and Hekkie Budler, attached to Hotbox Gym.
“I still feel amazing. I’m going to get back in the gym and show flames,” Kriel vowed.
“I know I still have what it takes. Like anything, the more you fight, the better you get.”
With Nathan’s fledgling No Doubt Management company constantly opening new doors, it was clearly a no-brainer for Kriel.
Still ranked 12th by both the IBF, where Nontshinga is the top contender, and the WBA at junior-flyweight, he has yet to lose a fight under Nathan’s tutelage, who he originally joined in 2014, and the pair share a special bond which extends well beyond boxing.
“I’m glad I have fought the best in the world. Yes I lost, but I still believe, going forward, I can become one of the top dogs in these smaller, talent-laden weight divisions,” Kriel said.
Kriel, whose four-month-old son was born in the US, conceded he gained a great deal of boxing knowledge on his American adventure, but there were simply no avenues for him to re-ignite his career there.
He has been starved of action since an unsuccessful challenge for Felix Alvarado’s IBF junior flyweight world title in Dallas at the beginning of 2021, where he succumbed to the only stoppage of his career, a 10th round technical knockout.
“I know I still have what it takes. Like anything, the more you fight, the better you get. I would still like to win a world title at junior-fly and want to become a multi-division world champion; that’s my dream. I won’t steer clear of anyone.”
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