Yes, Xu Can! China’s latest boxing star to put world title on the line in May
- The 25-year-old will defend his WBA featherweight crown against Japanese southpaw Shun Kubo
- Xu hopes to emulate the exploits of two-time Olympic gold medallist Zou Shiming
Ever since two-time Olympic champion Zou Shiming lost his WBO flyweight belt two years ago, China has been looking for a new hero to continue the mainland’s fine tradition of producing world-class boxers.
Zou was for years the poster boy of Chinese boxing, winning three Olympic medals – two golds in Beijing and London and bronze in Athens – and becoming a world champion in his division before his career came to a stuttering halt with his TKO loss in Shanghai to fearless Japanese Sho Kimura in his first title defence.
Serious eye problems followed the Zunyi native and during a flight flying home, Zou suffered a detached retina that put paid to his storied career. While 37-year-old Zou (9-2-0, 2 KOs) hasn’t officially announced his retirement, his long absence from the ring suggests that Chinese fight fans must root for the next Chinese treasure. And they might have found it in WBA featherweight champion Xu Can.
Only 25-years-old, the Fuzhou native from Jiangxi province is the third Chinese boxer to have won a professional world title following in the footsteps of Zou and retired fighter, former WBC minimumweight champion Xiong Chaozhong.
The quietly spoken Xu doesn’t have any Olympic medals to speak of but he has undeniable talent and he showed it when he upset Puerto Rico’s Jesus Rojas in January for the WBA featherweight crown in Houston, a bout he won by unanimous decision.
