Tenge still eager to fight world number one Braekhus
VETERAN female boxer Noni “She Bee Stinging” Tenge is still aspiring to challenge universally recognised best boxer Cecilia Braekhus despite signs that she is no longer as effective as she was in her prime.
Tenge revealed her plans after a harder than expected points win over tough Mapule Ngubane to retain her WBF junior middleweight title in a hastily arranged bout in Kagiso last weekend.
Organised by Showtime Promotions, the fight formed part of the promotion’s 10-year anniversary since promoting its first tournament, which also featured Tenge.
The fight came while Tenge was preparing for an international clash against Sweden’s Mikaela Lauren, which was initially scheduled for the end of this month. However, Lauren has since received an offer to go straight to fight Braekhus without taking the Tenge route.
She will now challenge the allconquering female world champ on October 21 in a rematch of their 2010 clash, where she was stopped within the distance.
At the time Lauren was a novice of just six bouts. Now she claims to have developed massively after compiling a 33-bout fight record.
Tenge, who was hoping a win over the Swedish lass would lead her to Braekhus, said she was still hopeful of getting a shot at the universally recognised best pound-for-pound female fighter before rounding down her career.
This is despite concerns about her status as a world class boxer after her struggle to beat Ngubane.
Her win over Ngubane marked her failure to score a stoppage victory in her last six fights since stopping Argentinean Silvia Fernanda Zacarias in 2013.
But Tenge allayed fears that she was on a downslide in her career, arguing that the fight came at rather short notice. “But as a professional I had to take it to keep me active because although I am training 365 days a year, when there is no competition in the ring it is bad,” the veteran boxer said.
“You cannot say you are fit until you get action in the ring.”
Tenge – the first-ever African woman boxer to win a major world title with the IBF welterweight title in 2011 – is now wrapping up her illustrious career, which includes two more WBF titles.
She recently relocated to Port Elizabeth because of job commitments.
While she is no longer benefiting from top sparring sessions in East London, she insists that it had nothing to do with her lukewarm performance against Ngubane.
“I am grateful to Showtime for the chance to step into the ring because that will help sharpen my skills so that I am ready for Braekhus when the opportunity arrives,” she said. — Boxing Mecca