Epic Heavyweight Showdown: Gerrie Coetzee vs. John Tate for WBA Title 🥊

Gerrie Coetzee vs John Tate for the vacant WBA world heavyweight title<br /><br />Date: October 20, 1979<br /><br />Venue: Loftus Versfeld Stadium, Pretoria, South Africa<br /><br />Coetzee stance: orthodox<br /><br />Tate stance: orthodox<br /><br />Gerrie Coetzee turned pro in 1974, and had nearly all his fights in his native South Africa. His first big win was an eighth round knockout of former world title challenger Ron Stander in his 12th bout. Two fights later, he defeated his rival from the amateur days, Kallie Knoetze. The most impressive result was a first round destruction of Leon Spinks in his first fight since losing his world title on points to Muhammad Ali. At this point, Coetzee was 22-0 with 13 KOs.<br /><br />After winning a bronze medal at the 1976 Olympics in Munich, John Tate had a solid start to his pro career. In his 12th bout, Tate knocked out unbeaten contender Bernado Mercado in the second round. Five fights later, he stopped Duane Bobick in the first round. Next, he beat Kallie Knoetze in the eighth round of a WBA final eliminator in South Africa. Tate would have to return to South Africa to fight for the vacant title.<br /><br />For an in depth look at their respective records, visit:<br /><br />Gerrie Coetzee - https://boxrec.com/en/proboxer/176<br /><br />John Tate - https://boxrec.com/en/proboxer/430