August 03, 2008 12:00am

BOXER Willie Kickett has blasted newly-crowned world champion Billy Dib as a fake, taunting the silky super-featherweight to hand back his IBO belt.

The Australian boxing community was left stunned last Wednesday night when Dib was awarded a controversial points decision over South African Zolani Molari.

In a surprise result, Molari was on the wrong end of the judges' scorecards despite a third-round knockdown over Dib.

The decision prompted Molari's camp to lodge an immediate protest with the IBO requesting a rematch, but the move is likely to produce nothing more than lip service from the governing body.

Kickett, regarded by those in the know as our next legitimate world champion contender, has rubbished Dib for accepting the title.

"I reckon he should hand the title back to the South African, how can he walk around like a world champ after getting a beating like he got?'' Kickett said. "That's not real, that's fake. If he wants a real fight, my door is wide open.

"I've been trying to get him to fight me for a while now but he keeps saying I'm not in his plans.''

Kickett's trainer Craig Christian has offered to entice Dib with the biggest purse of his boxing career, labelling his victory over Molari as "red hot''.

But champion trainer Johnny Lewis, who works Dib's corner, has urged Kickett to win his own world title before setting up a super-fight with Dib.

Lewis labelled a Dib-Kickett encounter as "a better fight than Danny Green-Anthony Mundine''. But the highly-respected trainer defended Dib's victory for the IBO title.

"If these two are half-smart they'll wait before they set it up,'' Lewis said. "If Willie can bring something to the table himself, then we're really talking. But at the moment all the bargaining power's with Billy Dib.

"One thing I do know is it will be a better fight than Mundine-Green. It would be a great fight next week but even bigger in 12 to 18 months.''

I'm with Willie all the way.

yew fuk yeh lol but i think kickett should w8 just a bit, like mayb a year, so then he will deff win

Why all the hype over Dibb anyway? Kickett will destroy this feather fist

id be supporting willie big time.

interesting for him to criticise the decision though.. few people think he got a lucky one against st clair

this is excatly what Australian boxing needs lets just hope this doesn't fizzel out to nothing
i remember the commentators with the st Clair fight saying Willie lost so it could be the:
BATTLE OF THE GIFTS

i like both of these fighters but dib personaly is abit over rated and wouldnt win a fight with kicket kickett by late tko (11)

id be supporting willie big time.

interesting for him to criticise the decision though.. few people think he got a lucky one against st clair

He didn't get lucky, it was a close fight.

cant wait for this, if it happens, kickett has much more talent than dib ever will, and yet dib gets all the hype from goldenboy. his last fight was a joke he even knows he lost it at the end.

seems like they dont like each other too, which is sick!

He didn't get lucky, it was a close fight.

Exactly - Don't think it was a rip off.
Could have gone either way though sure.

Haven't seen the Dibs fight so can't comment.

Zolani Marali clearly won that fight.How pathetic was it when he came into the round with his gloves undone. ****ing pathetic, **** like that undermines this great sport. Zolani Marali should have the title under his name not Billy

THE International Boxing Organisation (IBO) has undertaken to review the controversial outcome of the junior lightweight title clash between South Africa’s Zolani Marali and Australian Billy Dib in New South Wales, Australia, earlier this month.

This was revealed by both Marali’s promoter Golden Gloves Promotion (GGP) and IBO-SA representative Len Hunt.

Marali was a recipient of a dubious points decision defeat from two Thailand’s judges and their Australian counterpart when he contested the vacant IBO crown against Dib.

This when the South African appeared to have easily won the fight especially as he knocked down Dib in the third round.

GGP lodged an urgent appeal to the IBO regarding the outcome.

GGP publicist Terry Pettifer confirmed that the IBO had promised to review the video footage of the fight by appointing independent judges to score the fight off the tape.

“If the judges also support our argument that the fight was a robbery, the IBO has promised to order an urgent rematch,” he said.

Pettifer said it was surprising that the judges scored the third round even when they should have given it to Marali by two points due to the knockdown.

“The judges also gave Dib the last four rounds when Marali was pounding the Aussie around the ring and that raises a question mark about the legitimacy of the judging.”

Hunt said the independent judges would be appointed from Miami in US, as the IBO is based in America.

“It is only logical that the judges are appointed in the US,” he said.

Marali thanked the IBO for listening to their pleas that the fight was cooked.

“I hope the judges will see that there was no way that boy beat me and recommend to the IBO to do the honourable thing by ordering a rematch,” he said.



Hope there is a rematch