Kevin Lerena vs. Bogdan Dinu - March 26, 2022

[Ruthless-RKO]

Press Release

Former IBO cruiserweight champion, Kevin “Two Guns” Lerena, will be making his heavyweight debut against the 20-3 Romanian, Bogdan Dinu, at Emperor’s Palace on the 26th of February.

The 12-rounder will be for the vacant WBA Continental heavyweight title and a win should result in a world rating from the sanctioning body.

“The heavyweights are just different. People take notice. People are calling me to ask when the fight is happening,” says promoter Rodney Berman.

The 26-1 Lerena had an excellent run at cruiserweight. He made six defenses of his IBO world title, ending up in the world-wide top five of the independent rankings of both The Ring and Transnational Boxing Rankings Board.

Is he a heavyweight though? That is the question everyone wants to see answered.

Dinu should at least begin to answer that question. All three of his losses have been to top names in the division. He suffered his first defeat to Jarrell Miller back in 2018. The next year he gave two-time world title challenger, Kubrat Pulev, all he could handle. He had Pulev reeling from his combinations in the third round and opened a bad gash over the Bulgarian’s left eye in the fourth. Pulev pulled himself together and got rid of Dinu in the seventh with the fight still even on two cards. That fight was probably Dinu’s best performance. After two wins, he was beaten by Daniel Dubois in his last fight in June of this year for the WBA interim world title.

Will the southpaw Lerena be able to hit hard enough to get the respect of the big boys?

It would be interesting to see if Lerena can defeat Dinu in a similar fashion as Miller, Pulev and Dubois. Unless you have the superb skillset of Oleksandr Usyk, power seems to be an essential attribute for a heavyweight.

Will Lerena be able to take a heavyweight shot?

That is another question mark. With 16 knockouts, Dinu has a decent right hand. Also, standing 6’ 5”in his socks, he is a properly sized heavyweight and will have a substantial height and reach advantage.

[Ruthless-RKO]

South African news: Lerena vs. Dinu pushed back a bit

A heavyweight fight between South Africa's Kevin Lerena and Romania's Bogdan Dinu, scheduled for Emperor’s Palace in Kempton Park, has been moved one week later to March 26th, according to promoter Rodney Berman's website. Lerena is a former IBO cruiserweight champion looking for his first true heavyweight test. Lerena (26-1) vs. Dinu (20-3) is scheduled for twelve rounds.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Fight Week!!

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Lerena and Dinu ready and in weight in South Africa

South African Kevin Lerena and Romanian Bogdan Dinu both made weight for their bout this Saturday for the World Boxing Association (WBA) Intercontinental Heavyweight title, which will take place at Emperors Palace, Kempton Park, in Gauteng, South Africa.

Lerena, the local fighter, weighed an exact 231 pounds, while the visitor stopped the scales at 251.3 pounds, which leaves both ready to dispute the regional title.

It will be an interesting bout between two powerful fighters. Lerena has youth on his side and is on a roll as he has not lost a fight since 2014.

Dinu, on the other hand, has a wide experience and has fought against high quality opponents such as Daniel Dubois, Jarrell Miller or Kubrat Pulev. A great shooting for the European, who has an important advantage in weight and height.

Lerena has 26 wins, 1 loss and 13 knockouts. Dinu has 20 wins, 3 losses and 16 knockouts.

[Ruthless-RKO]

Lerena dropped Dinu 3 times ..

Stopped him in 4..

[margaret thatcher]

meh