Tomorrow (Tuesday, October 30th) Hamid Rahimi and Said Mbelwa will make history when they step into the ring for the “Fight 4 Peace” in Kabul, the first professional boxing event in the history of Afghanistan. The World Boxing Organisation officially sanctioned the 12 round middleweight contest for the vacant WBO Intercontinental “Peace” Championship which means that the winner will enter the top 15 of the WBO middleweight ratings.
At today’s official weigh-in both contenders made the weight. Rahimi who emphasized again that the “Fight 4 Peace” is “a dream coming true” weighed in at 72.4 kg (159.6 lbs.) while Mbelwa brought exactly the limit at 72.5 kg (160 lbs.).
Said Mbelwa (19-8-4, 12 KOs) who fought four the WBO Youth world cruiserweight championship in December 2011, losing to Agron Dzila from Switzerland, renewed his threat to knock out Rahimi in four rounds: “I said it before and I’ll say it again: The “Fight 4 Peace” is an important event and I respect Hamid Rahimi and his team for what they are doing. But once that bell rings I will do all I can to be victorious and take the “Peace Belt” home to Tanzania. Unfortunately, they got the wrong man. I will crash the party.”
Local hero and “Peace Fighter” Rahimi wasn’t intimated at all, stating “My people and my country are giving me so much positive energy. I simply cannot lose this fight. I will win for Afghanistan and send the peace message out to the world. ”
