Bungu advises ring warriors
As the day of the highly anticipated clash between veteran Ali Funeka and rookie Uyanda Nogogo is nearing, boxing legend Vuyani Bungu has stepped in to offer his advice on what both boxers need to do to win.
Funeka, 40, and Nogogo, who is half his age, will clash in a junior-middleweight bout at Orient Theatre on Sunday. The fight will be a co-feature to the Xaba Promotion organised SA junior-bantamweight title encounter between nemeses Sikho Nqothole and Sabelo Ngebiyana. The newly-formed world body Legends Boxing Foundation will also make its debut in the country by making its international junior-bantamweight belt a carrot.
While the Nqothole-Ngebiyana clash is mouthwatering enough after the two boxers fought in Swaziland in November with the Cape Town-born Ngebiyana prevailing, it is the bout between Funeka and Nogogo that seems to have sent boxing fans into a frenzy.
The clash may turn out to be a mismatch or the emergence of a new star.
Bungu, the country’s record holder for most world title defences when he defended his IBF junior-featherweight crown 13 times, said the outcome will hinge on two fronts.
“Owing to Funeka’s advanced age, I would advise him to avoid exchanges at all costs,” said Bungu. “When you are fighting a young fresh boxer, it is better to use your brains instead of brawn. Funeka must avoid getting sucked into a brawl and that will be a mammoth task for him as he tends to get drawn into the trenches.”
Part of Bungu’s advice is based on Funeka’s unsteady legs when he gets nailed by a clean punch. The former world title contender also does not possess the sturdiest of chins.
Bungu admits that he has never seen Nogogo in action but judging by his record of three stoppages in six wins with a single loss, he rates the 20year-old as a big puncher.
While he has Funeka’s plans to win mapped out, Bungu also has an advice for the upstart.
“All Nogogo needs to do is to bulldoze Funeka and make him fight his fight,” he said.
Citing the fight between Macbute Sinyabi and Lusanda Komanisi as an example, Bungu feels Nogogo should adopt Komanisi’s approach.
“If you look at that fight, Komanisi simply walked through anything Sinyabi threw at him to land his own punches and the fight took a decisive turn,” he said. “That is exactly what Nogogo needs to do otherwise if he adopts a wait-and-see approach, he will play right into Funeka’s hands.”
A loss by Funeka will likely bring down the curtain on his illustrious career that included winning the SA junior-lightweight title, challenging for the world lightweight title three times and capturing the IBO and WBF welterweight titles.