No purse, no bout for fighter
ONCE again Xolisani “Nomeva” Ndongeni has found himself at the centre of boxing nonpayment controversy after the tournament in which he was set to fight, was cancelled at the 11th hour due to the promoter’s failure to avail funds for it.
This after the tournament, organised by Lizani Events, at Coetzenburg Stadium in Stellenbosch where Ndongeni was scheduled to fight Ghanaian boxer Razak Nettey, was cancelled yesterday.
This despite the tournament already having secured television coverage from SuperSport but had to be called off when Lizani Events boss Mzoli Tempi could not meet the financial requirements on time.
By yesterday, some of the boxers who were scheduled to fight, were still trying to make sense of what had happened while Tempi was spin-doctoring matters in the face of a media storm coming his way.
When asked why the event was called off, Tempi said he would issue a statement later.
While Tempi ducked and dived, Boxing SA was forthright in giving the answers.
BSA chief executive Tsholofelo Lejaka said the plug was pulled on the tournament due to the organisers’ failure to adhere to regulations under Section Section 11(4)A.
“It states that ‘a promoter must not later than 30 days prior to the date of a tournament or by any other date specified by Boxing SA, deposit with Boxing SA in cash or by bank guaranteed cheque, an amount equal to the total of (a) the purses to be paid to the boxers engaged for the tournament or where one or more boxers are to be paid a percentage, the estimate amount thereof as determined by Boxing SA’”.
Lejaka said the regulatory structure gave the organisers enough time to come up with the funds until it was left with no choice but to pull the plug on the tournament.
“BSA is fully mindful of the magnitude of inconvenience that arises from such an unfortunate eventuality, particularly the inconvenience which accrues to the boxers, their management collective and the fans. It is for that reason that the option to finally withdraw any provisional sanction for a tournament is always considered as the very last option,” he said, vowing to take appropriate action against the promoter.
“Boxing SA is highly perturbed by the reputational damage brought by such developments to our beautiful sport of professional boxing, particularly at a time when a lot of ground is being covered to turn things around and locate boxing back on top.
“On the inverse, we cannot afford any situation where our boxers participate in tournaments where their purse money isn’t guaranteed. We will leave no stone unturned to ensure that anyone found culpable of such selfish and irresponsible acts are made to account.”
Ndongeni, who was to make his long-awaited ring return since his last bout in the US last November, was crestfallen by the developments.
“We are still trying to get answers about this and that is all I can say for now,” he said.
It is the third time Ndongeni is involved in a non-payment saga as he is still owed R1-million by Premier Boxing League (PBL) for winning its series two years ago. He was also one of the boxers owed by Sijuta Promotions in their tournament held in East London in April last year.
While BSA eventually paid the boxers, Sijuta is yet to settle the amount and has since been suspended.
Another East London boxer who was scheduled to fight in the Cape Town tournament, was Thembelani Nxoshe who was to defend his SA flyweight crown against Dalisizwe Komani.