It’s time for newly crowned Fiji lightweight champion Mikaele Ravalaca to focus on other worthy opponents instead of Sydney-based Runqi Zhou. Zhou’s trainer Angelo Hyder has made it clear that they have signed up for a World Boxing Council (WBC) Grand Prix, which takes place in Saudi Arabia in May. For Zhou, this is his pathway to becoming a world champion. Getting a ticket to fight in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, is every boxer and trainer’s dream. This was evident when a top contender for the world’s heavyweight title Martin Bakole could easily accept to come in as an eleventh-hour replacement to fight Joseph Parker after Daniel Dubois pulled out sick. He travelled all the way from Congo in Central Africa, to only arrive in Riyadh on the morning of the fight. Although Bakole lost on a second-round knockout, he is now in the good books of Turki Alalshikh and will sooner or later get a chance to redeem himself. For Zhou’s camp this is an opening they have been waiting for. Hyder and manager Tony Tolji have groomed many world champions and they know what is at stake for their promising boxer. When Zhou won the IBO (International Boxing Organisation) Asia Pacific super featherweight title in Nadi on October 26, the focus was on the world title. The IBO Asia Pacific title was to provide them that leverage to the top and now they have signed up with WBC for the Grand Prix. Hyder and Tolji have been in the game for some time and are well-aware of the politics involved, what connections to have and steps to take to hit the limelight. Sadly, this is what our local boxers and handlers lack. They’ve got to stop focusing internally but to think outside the box. They’ve to put in the hard work and be smart because the challenges are going to get bigger each time they go higher. If they play their cards right it will be very rewarding as well. There’s no short-cut to being a world champion. It’s all about taking your chances when the opportunity arises. For Ravalaca, there is no point in fighting Zhou or even challenging Junior Binnu Singh for Fiji’s super featherweight title. It’s time for him to make the wrongs right and that is to fight boxers he had lost to during the course of his career. For Ravalaca, he fortunately has one and that is a rematch against Victorian-based, Pom Thanawut Phetkum who had beaten him on points during his professional debut at Suva’s Vodafone Arena on March 25, 2023. The fight was under the Lewis-Hill Boxing Promotions. Phetkum was the former Australian National Boxing Federation (ANBF) Australasian featherweight champion with a record of 6 wins and 2 losses. This should be Ravalaca’s target and once he overcomes Phtekum then his handlers can decide on what weight category to fight in and the list of boxers he needs to fight in order to rise to the next level. Nothing is impossible and the onus is on Team Ravalaca to take on the world’s best boxers. Feedback: leonec@fijisun.com.fj