Franco Wanyama


Franco "Thunderbird" Wanyama in Kampala, was a Ugandan amateur middleweight and professional cruiser/heavyweight boxer of the 1980s, '90s and 2000s. He was an amateur representative of Uganda at middleweight in the Boxing at the 1988 Summer Olympics in Seoul, South Korea, losing to eventual bronze medal winner Chris Sande of Kenya, and as a professional won the BeNeLux heavyweight title, BeNeLux cruiserweight title, Commonwealth cruiserweight title, and World Boxing Federation cruiserweight title, and was a challenger for the Commonwealth cruiserweight title against Chris Okoh, his professional fighting weight varied from, i.e. cruiserweight to, i.e. heavyweight. Wanyama defeated notable fighters such as Jimmy Thunder, Carl Thompson and Johnny Nelson and was sparring partner to Vitali Klitschko & Wladimir Klitschko. He lived his last years in Rugby, Warwickshire, England and had 3 children, Nellie Wanyama, Shannon Wanyama and Wanga Wanyama.

Early life

Franco started boxing around the age of 6 after becoming curious of what was inside a local boxing gym.

Professional career

Franco made his professional debut on 25 December 1989 against Dutch fighter John Held it ended a 6-round points draw. In 1990 he beat future world title holder Carl Thompson on points. In 1993 he won a bout against another future world champion, Johnny Nelson, who was disqualified for repeated holding. In 1995 he was matched with former world champion Thomas Hearns but the fight was called off at the last minute and Hearns was replaced by ranked Heavyweight James 'Thunder' Wanyama and gave away a 30 pounds in weight but still came away with a points victory.

Later years

After his retirement Franco worked as a sparring partner, notably with the Klitschko brothers. From 2007 he became a youth worker and boxing coach in Rugby, taking classes for the youth service whilst also being a coach at a local amateur boxing gym. On the 21st of March 2019 Franco died at his home in Rugby.

Professional boxing record

No.ResultRecordOpponentTypeRound, timeDateLocationNotes
29Win20–7–2 Csaba OlahTKO3 2000-06-16 Ghent, Belgium
28Win19–7–2 Daniel JerlingPTS61999-10-15 Ghent, Belgium
27Win18–7–2 Geert Blieck61999-04-05 Ghent, Belgium
26Win17–7–2 Abdul KadouPTS101997-12-25 Nakivubo Stadium, Kampala, Uganda
25Loss16–7–2 Dirk WallynTKO5 1996-12-25 Izegem, Belgium
24Loss16–6–2 Dirk WallynTKO7 1996-11-01 Izegem, Belgium
23Loss16–5–2 Garry DelaneyPTS61996-02-06 Festival Hall, Basildon, England
22Loss16–4–2 Chris OkohTKO8 1995-09-29 York Hall, Bethnal Green, EnglandFor vacant Commonwealth Cruiserweight title.
21Win16–3–2 James Thunder101995-07-16 Cobo Arena, Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
20Draw15–3–2 Kalin StoyanovPTS81994-04-02 De Haan, Belgium
19Win15–3–1 Tony BoothTKO2 1994-01-28 Waregem, BelgiumWon vacant Commonwealth Cruiserweight title.
18Win14–3–1 Bobbie Joe EdwardsPTS81993-12-25 Izegem, Belgium
17Win13–3–1 Johnny Nelson10 1993-10-01 Waregem, BelgiumWon WBF Cruiserweight title.
Nelson disqualified for repeated fouls.
16Win12–3–1 Daniel Krumov2 1993-04-23 Waregem, Belgium
15Win11–3–1 John Held101993-01-29 Waregem, BelgiumWon BeNeLux Cruiserweight title.
14Win10–3–1 Tony BoothPTS61992-12-25 Izegem, Belgium
13Win9–3–1 Faustino GonzalezTKO3 1992-11-01 Izegem, Belgium
12Win8–3–1 Vladimir DyukarevTKO1 1992-10-02 Waregem, Belgium
11Loss7–3–1 John EmmenKO10 1991-06-24 Weenahal, Rotterdam, NetherlandsFor BeNeLux Heavyweight title.
10Win7–2–1 Ramon VoornPTS101991-02-18 Sportcentrum Valkencourt, Valkenswaard, Netherlands
9Win6–2–1 Boubakar SanogoPTS81990-12-25 Izegem, Belgium
8Loss5–2–1 Norbert Ekassi2 1990-10-13 Ghent, Belgium
7Win5–1–1 Ian BullochTKO5 1990-05-12 Waasmunster, Belgium
6Win4–1–1 Carl ThompsonPTS61990-04-21 Sint-Amandsberg, Belgium
5Win3–1–1 Mohamed ZaouiTKO3 1990-04-07 Carvin, France
4Loss2–1–1 Christophe GirardPTS81990-03-16 Blois, France
3Win2–0–1 Serge BolivardPTS61990-02-10 Roeselare, Belgium
2Win1–0–1 Abner Blackstock4 1990-01-12 Waregem, Belgium
1Draw0–0–1 John Held61989-12-25 Izegem, BelgiumProfessional debut