Former World Heavyweight Boxing Champion
S.A. HEAVYWEIGHTS
GERRIE COETZEE
© GERRIE COETZEE 2010-2018
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South African Heavyweights ... Two by Two
By Deon Potgieter
With
a
dearth
of
heavyweights
currently
active
in
South
Africa
there
will
be
a
lot
of
attention
on
the
debut
of
two
new
prospective
talents
on
Friday
night
at
Nasrec
Johannesburg.
Jakes
Els
from
Brakpan
and
Barend
Liebenberg
from
the
Free
State
will
be
making
their
debut
against
each
other
in
a
fight
which
is
seen
as
an
indicator
of
whether
either
or
both
could
be
a
savior
of
sorts
for
the
sport
locally.
While
there
is
some
exciting
talent
on
the
rise
in
the
lower
weight
divisions,
it
is
the
heavyweights
that
attract
the
masses.
South
Africa
has
produced
numerous
world-class
heavyweights
throughout
its
proud
116
year
boxing
history.
Whereas
in
earlier
times
the
really
outstanding
fighters
arrived
one
by
one,
the
past
30
years
have
seen
them
arriving
in
twos.
The
most
memorable
and
fiercest
local
rivalry
of
them
all
was
between
Gerrie
Coetzee
and
Kallie
Knoetze.
As
amateurs
they
met
on
six
occasions,
each
winning
three
bouts.
As
professionals,
their
rivalry
developed
into
a
feud,
both
being
out
to
prove
just
who
the
best
was.
Fight
fans
and
the
public
at
large
were
divided
–
you
were
either
a
Coetzee
or
a
Knoetze
man
–
there
was
no
middle
ground
.
Given
their
personalities,
Knoetze
was
the
more
likable,
but
Coetzee
was
seen
as
the better technical boxer, and both attracted the fans with ease.
“We
never
liked
each
other,”
says
Knoetze.
“I
think
it
was
because
he
knew
how
hard
I
could
hit
and
I
knew
how
fast
he
was.
I’d
still
be
throwing
a punch and he’d have hit me twice.”
The
late
sportswriter
Chris
Greyvenstein
said
of
Knoetze,
“He
wielded
his
right
with
shattering
effect,
and
if
Knoetze
added
the
dedication
of
a
(Rocky) Marciano to this gift from the gods, he could have been the best heavyweight in the world.”
Coetzee
and
Knoetze
met
only
once
as
professionals,
with
Coetzee
winning
a
very
controversial
points
decision.
Coetzee
dropped
Knoetze
in
the
fourth
round,
but
the
man
who
modeled
his
mouth
on
Muhammad
Ali
came
back
strong
in
the
latter
rounds
and
had
ringsiders,
as
well as television audiences, convinced he had taken the fight. The judges, however, saw it differently.
In
1979
the
dream
of
seeing
two
South
Africans
do
battle
against
each
other
for
the
heavyweight
crown
became
a
real
possibility.
Both
fighters
had
proven
their
worth
by
facing
and
beating
a
host
of
top
ten
contenders
–
mostly
via
the
short
route.
At
that
stage
the
WBA
world
champion
Ali
was
washed-up
following
his
farcical
matches
with
the
novice
Leon
Spinks
and
decided
to
relinquish
his
title
rather
than
face
either
Coetzee or Knoetze, who would most certainly have inflicted some serious and unnecessary damage on the legend.
Knoetze
and
Coetzee
then
met
Big
John
Tate
and
Spinks
in
an
elimination
tournament
for
the
vacant
title.
“It
was
what
everybody
here
wanted
to
see, Gerrie and myself for the heavyweight championship of the world,” says Knoetze. “It was a dream.”
Knoetze,
overwhelmed
by
the
enormity
of
the
occasion,
ran
out
of
gas
and
lost
to
Tate
on
an
eighth
round
technical
knockout.
“Physically
I
was
ready. I could have beaten anybody,” says Knoetze “but mentally I was still an amateur. When I got in the ring I was scared”
Knoetze’s
preparation
prior
to
the
fight
consisted
of
numerous
functions
to
satisfy
sponsors
and,
always
being
a
big
party
animal,
the
big
hitting
and charismatic fighter indulged himself more than would be expected of a fighter in training for a fight of this magnitude.
A
week
after
Knoetze’s
shocking
defeat,
Coetzee
took
on
Spinks
in
Monte
Carlo.
At
the
time
Spinks
was
thought
to
be
the
tougher
of
the
two
Americans.
After
all,
Spinks
had
just
gone
30
rounds
back
to
back
with
“The
Greatest.”
Coetzee
showed
no
respect
for
this
hyped
status,
however,
and
scored
one
of
the
most
memorable
knockouts
in
heavyweight
history.
Spinks
was
clearly
out
of
his
league
and
visited
the
canvas
three times shortly after the start of the first round.
A
record
number
of
90
000
spectators
flocked
to
Loftus
Versfeld
on
October
20,
1979
to
see
Coetzee
take
on
Tate
for
the
WBA
heavyweight
world
title.
An
uncannily
lack
luster
Coetzee
put
on
a
dismal
performance
and
Tate
won
a
very
dull
15
round
points
decision.
Coetzee
got
another
shot
at
world
honors
against
Tate’s
conqueror,
Mike
Weaver,
a
year
later.
Failing
to
finish
off
the
job
after
having
Weaver
in
all
sorts
of
trouble
throughout the bout, Coetzee himself was stopped in the 13th round of a grueling and very exciting contest.
Two
years
later,
on
September
23,1983,
Coetzee
got
it
right
and
knocked
out
Michael
Dokes
–
a
man
who
had
never
even
been
knocked
down
until then – in the 10th round of a pulsating battle for the WBA crown.
