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WBF Advisory Board member
Francois “The White Buffalo”
Botha is one helluva character.
He is also a good friend of
mine, and often I refer to him
as my baby brother such is our
relationship. The “White
Buffalo” has officially been
retired for a few years now, and
will never seriously return to
the ring.
Francois has had his time of
glory, winning a world
heavyweight title and sharing
the ring with greats such as
Wladimir Klitschko, Evander
Holyfield, Mike Tyson, Michael
Moorer, Shannon Briggs and
Lennox Lewis to mention but a
few.
But nothing nor time can stop
his enthusiasm for boxing, and
he once again gets into the ring
on March 31 simply for an
exhibition charity fight against
Uwe Hueck from Germany in a
rematch of their first charity
fight in Ludwigsburg in November
2015.
Francois loves his fans, adores
the limelight but more
importantly focuses on giving
back to the sport that took him
to the top of the world. He
speaks and preaches about the
growth of the WBF and is proud,
no - extremely proud of his
important role within the
star-struck WBF
Advisory Board.
So it was quite amusing to read
on social media after Francois's
entertaining post warning Uwe
about the upcoming fight, that
some of Francois's many fans
around the world were upset that
he is still fighting and that
its time for him to retire.
Here's the truth: The “White
Buffalo” has retired! He will
not fight again in a serious
fight. No more titles and no
more contenders. But while
having retired from fighting, he
has not retired from boxing. A
few charity fights here and
there, but more important
Francois wants to give back and
groom young fighters into
champions.
The former WBF World heavyweight
champion Francois Botha is the
type of character boxing needs.
Never boring, always
unpredictable, great sense of
humor, hugely entertaining – and
one of my best friends. It will
be my pleasure to be the guest
referee for this charity fight
and I hope that Francois and Uwe
enjoy their time again in the
ring.
Until next time, keep boxing.
Howard Goldberg
PRESIDENT: World Boxing
Federation
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