Simpiwe Vetyeka’s handlers are ready to discuss a return bout between the new WBA featherweight champion and Chris John.
"We'll see how John's camp feels about a return, which would be a huge attraction in Indonesia, and then make a decision on Vetyeka's next fight,” Vetyeka’s trainer, Nick Durandt, said on Friday.
"Simpiwe is now hot boxing property. Enquiries [about fights] are rolling in,” Durandt said.
Vetyeka, who has the IBO belt, dethroned the Indonesian in Perth, Australia, last weekend and took over the veteran’s WBA title.
Durandt said there was a return clause in the contract for the fight in Perth, but he was unsure whether John would consider a rematch after the beating he suffered.
Vetyeka ended John's unbeaten run, which comprised 51 fights in a 15-year professional career, when the champion failed to come out for the seventh round.
The victory made Vetyeka the first South African in more than a decade to hold IBO and WBA titles at the same time.
John was the longest reigning WBA title holder and has been one of Indonesia’s leading sports heroes for more than a decade. He was chasing the record of legendary heavyweight Rocky Marciano, who retired as undefeated champion after 49 victories.
"The Indonesian camp could barely believe what was happening," said Durandt. "They believed their boxer was invincible."
Vetyeka regained his IBO title four months ago with when he stopped Daud Cino Yordan, also from Indonesia, in the 12th round.
Yordan also fought in Perth last week, moving up two divisions and beating another South African, Sipho Taliwe, on a split decision to retain the IBO lightweight belt.
Durandt, who was in Taliwe's corner, believes poor refereeing played a role in the result.
"Two blatant infringements by the Indonesian went unpunished. He should have been docked a point. That made all the difference," the veteran trainer said.
Taliwe's IBO ranking had slipped to 43rd, but the organization sanctioned the fight against Yordan for its lightweight title. It provided Taliwe with an opportunity to revitalise a career that had wavered over the previous 18 months.
"It is a shame that he lost under such controversial circumstances," said Durandt, adding that a protest had been lodged with the IBO, asking for a return title fight.