Returning to Lithuania, Kaunas’ Žalgiris Arena, and the UTMA ring, one of the best Lithuanian boxers of all time, Eimantas Stanionis, already knows his opponent for the UTMA 19 – it will be the talented 24-year-old South African boxer Kaine Fourie.
E. Stanionis will step into the ring for a professional 10-round boxing match at UTMA 19. This bout will take place at a weight limit of up to 150 lbs (68.08 kg).
“This time we were looking for an opponent not just based on rankings, but also on their style. We really wanted a fighter who wants to brawl. In the fight with Jabulani, we saw that he was more of a punch-absorbing, counter-attacking fighter. Now, we were looking for a brawler who would seek contact himself. It seems we have found exactly that – we will see how he looks in the ring. We are truly expecting a great fight.
“The search for an opponent went well and steadily. There are certainly many eager boxers in Europe looking for opportunities and wanting to fight mid-level boxers, but it is difficult to find higher-tier opponents, and the majority of those at a higher level already have contracts in the USA,” commented UTMA head V. Gecas.
This fight will take place at the Žalgiris Arena in Kaunas on September 26. It will be the co-main event of the tournament, while the main event of the evening will feature a kickboxing rules bout between Sergej Maslobojev and Dominykas Dirkstys.
Tickets for this event are distributed by kakava.lt, and the PPV broadcast can be purchased at UTMA.lt.
“I am very happy and grateful to the UTMA organization for the opportunity to fight in Lithuania again. I really want to show a new version of myself; I tried very hard and put in a lot of work. Finally, I will fight. I have a renewed fire that had somewhat faded and disappeared, but now it is ignited again, and I want to be in the ring as soon as possible,” E. Stanionis said about his return to the ring in Kaunas during a special UTMA press conference.
During his professional career, K. Fourie has secured 13 victories, 11 of which came by way of knockout, suffered two losses, and had two of his fights end in a draw.
K. Fourie stepped into the ring for the first time in his professional career in December 2020.
K. Fourie has fought twice for lightweight championship belts – in 2024, the boxer became the IBF Africa Lightweight Champion. In 2025, K. Fourie fought for the IBO Intercontinental Lightweight Championship belt, but failed to secure a victory that time.
It was after this fight that K. Fourie moved up to a higher weight class and immediately started securing victories – in 2026, the South African boxer won twice, both times by knockout.
As a reminder, the 32-year-old E. Stanionis fought in Lithuania for the first time in his professional boxing career at the UTMA 13 event – that time, the boxer defeated Jabulani Makhense by unanimous decision.
In his professional career, E. Stanionis has collected 16 wins (9 by KO) and suffered 1 loss.
The greatest achievement of E. Stanionis’ professional career is winning the WBA Welterweight World Championship title in 2022.
“For Eimantas, this is a fight to get back into a rhythm. It’s important to emphasize the rankings – in order for him to remain in the global rankings, he must fight at least once a year. Since time has passed quickly, it is especially important for him to return to the ring right now. We hope he remains close to a world championship title fight. I believe this bout should bring him even closer,” stated V. Gecas.
In the BoxRec rankings, E. Stanionis ranks 19th in the world among all welterweight fighters, and in “The Ring” magazine’s rankings for this weight class, he holds an impressive 4th place.
K. Fourie has already climbed to the 133rd spot in the BoxRec welterweight rankings.
This fight will take place at the Žalgiris Arena in Kaunas on September 26. It will be the co-main event of the tournament, while the main event of the evening will feature a kickboxing rules bout between Sergej Maslobojev and Dominykas Dirkstys.
Tickets for this event are distributed by kakava.lt, and the PPV broadcast can be purchased at UTMA.lt.
