Tourney likely to cost promoters
THE decision by promoter Xaba Promotions and Events (XPE) to go ahead with their boxing tournament despite failing to get funding from Buffalo City Metro may come back to haunt them.
This after their top boxers Makazole Tete and Aphiwe Mboyiya suffered crucial defeats in their respective bouts at Mdantsane Indoor Centre at the weekend.
XPE soldiered on opting to fund the show out of their pocket when BCM inexplicably decided not to support the event.
XEP boss Ayanda Matiti subsequently challenged BCM’s decision in court in an ongoing case.
But their decision to go ahead with it may have been a wrongly calculated move especially with the knockout defeat of Tete, who was knocked out in two rounds by unheralded Filipino Jonas Sultan to surrender his IBF Intercontinental crown.
Tete was earmarked to challenge for the fully fledged IBF crown as part of the birthday celebrations for the late struggle icon Nelson Mandela.
But all such plans have gone up in smoke in Tete’s stunning defeat – his first by a stoppage and his second overall after he suffered his other loss to Gideon Buthelezi for the IBO title.
Tete's defeat was not the only low blow for XPE as their other charge Mboyiya lost his SA junior lightweight belt to Phila Mpontshane on points.
Mboyiya was favoured to retain his title after going a remarkable year in which he picked up at least five titles, including his stunning win over veteran Jasper Seroka to take the national title.
So confident of a win, that Mboyiya’s camp did not mind cherrypicking Mpontshane as a challenger despite him not even being a mandatory challenger. junior bantamweight
Mpontshane trains at Eyethu boxing club which plucked Mboyiya from obscurity and turned him into a national champion.
And the camp now manned by former SA flyweight champion Ncedo Cecane proved to know Mboyiya’s weaknesses which they ruthlessly exploited.
But Mboyiya’s camp cried foul for the outcome blaming the defeat to inexperienced officials who were appointed to handle the bout.
“The officials scored all Mpontshane punches that hit the guards,” chief trainer Kholisile Cengani said.
Mboyiya and Tete’s losses capped a surprising turn of events for XPE boxers as the year is drawing to a close.
Only last week one of its premier fighters, Ali Funeka, was knocked out in six rounds in a crucial fight in New Zealand.
The 38-year-old Mdantsane veteran lost to Australian Jeff Horn in a WBO Intercontinental welterweight title clash watched by Hall of Fame promoter Bob Arum.
Funeka would have positioned himself with a lucrative clash against Manny Pacquiao had he won the fight.
But there was a little reprieve at Mdantsane Indoor Centre when XPE prospects, including Sinethemba Bam and Bangile Nyangani, won their bouts.
Bam moved up to the featherweight division to beat Limpopo’s Pfariseni Khorombi on points while Nyangani moved to three wins in as many fights after stopping Yanga Vaba in three rounds of their mini-flyweight clash.
Buthelezi also beat Doctor Ntsele in a stay busy fight while Olympian Siphiwe Lusizi also scored a points win over Jimmy Mabhadji.
Yanga Sigqibo outscored former champion Xola Sifama in a flyweight duel.