By Mesuli Zifo

Four years after Mzonke Fana was brutally defeated by upstart Sipho Taliwe- a loss which was then believed to have ended his career- he is back fighting for a major world title when he challenges Englishman Terry Flanagan for the WBO lightweight crown at Ice Arena in Cardiff, Wales on Saturday.

Being 42 years old, Fana can be described as a Cinderella Man of boxing having remarkably rebounded from the Taliwe loss.

The scenes of Fana limping off the ring after the fight at Emperors Palace, South Africa in 2012 with his face bruised, all but spelt the end of his career.

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He was fighting for the second time after being subjected to a lengthy spell on the sidelines following the ignominy of getting stripped of his IBF junior lightweight crown.

After losing the title Fana decided to embark on a crusade to get reinstated, pleading with anyone including the South African Parliament to intervene.

While he was fighting for justice his fighting skills were eroding.

He was never reinstated while the lengthy spell also seemed to have been a final nail on the coffin of his career.

“I decided to rededicate myself and prayed to God to give me back my career,’’ Fana recalls.

But the prayer seemed to have fallen on deaf ears as Fana was stopped in four rounds by Namibian Paulos Moses in his following fight.

He never gave up hope as he soldiered on risking his health and legacy of being used as stepping stone for rising stars.

A morale boosting win over another former washed up IBF champion Takalani Ndlovu did little to suggest that he had turned the corner and when he lost to unbeaten Finish star Edis Tatli calls for him to hang them up reached a crescendo.

But the defiant Fana refused to go away.

He decided to retrace his career back to his birthplace of Qumbu where he had never fought before.

His ancestors appeared to welcome with warm hands as he produced a breathtaking performance to destroy Themba Tshicila in two-one sided rounds.

“That fight confirmed what I had often believed in that I still had boxing left in me,” he said.

A lacklustre performance against Koos Sibiya when Fana escaped with a split decision was later attributed to the death of his father just days before the fight.

“When I got the news of my father’s death I thought of withdrawing from the fight but then I decided to go ahead with it when I realised that he would have wanted me to fight. But my spirit was not there.”

Despite the win he was still viewed as stepping stone and this led to him getting a call to face unbeaten rising star Xolisani Ndongeni in what billed as Ndongeni’s coming out party in his debut under new promotional powerhouse Golden Gloves Promotion.

But Fana proved to be a party pooper as he schooled Ndongeni only to lose a very unpopular decision.

A decision win over Tanzanian Said Zungu was followed by his revenge victory over Taliwe.

Eager to prove himself especially if the money is right, Fana accepted a fight against another European star in Belgian Hedi Slimani and after a seemingly dominant display Fana was declared a loser.

Despite being denied the victory he had made his mark and no one was to take him as a stepping stone anymore.

A pair of local young boxers such as Xolani Mcotheli and Vusumzi Bokolo found that out the hard way when they were dealt knockout defeats by the boxer who appear to mature with age like old wine.

Now he has an opportunity to hit the ceiling and defy Father Time by dethroning the unbeaten Flanagan whose complacency has been visible by continuing to call out domestic rival Anthony Crolla to a showdown.

Having fought in enemy territory Fana is unfazed by the disdain the fight has received from hardcore boxing fans.

“I know I am being seen as an easy payday for Flanagan but I know what I am capable of. I have dealt with young boxers who saw me as an old man and if Flanagan thinks the same he is in with a shock.”

The fight will serve as a co-feature to the WBA junior featherweight title defence by Cuban star Guillermo Rigondeaux against Jazza Dickens.