Jukebox Timebomb and the ‘other’ African heavyweights (late 1980s/early ‘90s)

Yeah, we know about the South African heavyweights pipeline that started quietly in the 1970s with probably Mike Schutte then handed down the baton through Kallie Knoetze, Gerrie Coetzee, Jimmy Abbott, Johnny Du Plooy, Pierre Coetzer and Corrie Sanders.

Maybe I missed one or two (I don’t think Bennie Knoetze quite took the step forward, but neither did Jimmy Abbott, really).

These were the white heavies of magnificent mustaches who, for a time, put South Africa on the heavyweight map with success of various levels.

But that’s not of whom I’m speaking.

There was another group of journeymen who overlapped with some of these guys, yet I don’t think any of these I’m talking about ever fought any of the above (perhaps because SA didn’t have any, or many, mixed-race bouts and these were, I presume, all black fighters).

This group had the most outrageous names in the history of names. They were all, or at least mostly, from Zimbabwe, and I assume they just made up their boxing names to use as stage names.

Proud Kilimanjaro

Jukebox Timebomb

Black Tiger

Captain Cleopus Marvel

Kid Power

Walter Ringo Starr

McVision Black Bullet (sadly, he only had one bout)

And, of course … George Forman, lol.

This George went like 1-9. Proud Kilimanjaro had a decent 32-8 type career with a few losing trips to the UK. Kid Power was something like 22-7 but never stepped outside this circuit to try his luck against the next tier.

These men toiled in Zimbabwe, Zambia, Ivory Coast and Nigeria. Mostly, or at least very often, against each other.

I want to know if anyone knows anything about this group of fighters with the crazy names, if there are any stories or hidden history.

And I also wanted to sort of pay tribute. They weren’t world-beaters and they certainly didn’t get rich doing this, but they strapped on their gloves and stepped into the ring and went at it. I would love to have been there to see one of these spectacles.

 

Allow me to correct myself: I have discovered one crossover fight between the more familiar South African heavyweights and this Zimbabwe crew: Mike Schutte in 1979 pounded a drumbeat out on Walter Ringo Starr, stopping him in two.

Also, I certainly should have included Frans Botha in the white South African heavies … props and apologies to the White Buffalo.

Should also mention, there was a guy in the Zimbabwe crew named … John Fighter.

Finally, I also discovered a guy who went 3-0 by the name of … Joe Frazier. He was wise enough, unlike the more familiar Smokin’ Joe, to never fight his country’s George Foreman. (But if he did, I’d love to have a fight poster from that one!!!)