Cape Argus

‘Battle Royale’ expected at Cape Muay Thai fight night

- JULIAN KIEWIETZ julian.kiewietz@inl.co.za

MUAY Thai fans in the Mother City have good reason to get excited, as one of South Africa’s most well-run events returns to Cape Town this weekend.

Thaiholics Fight Promotions (TFP) is back with its ninth show since its inception, and its first for the year.

#TFP9: Battle Royale takes place tomorrow at the Sunningdal­e Sports Complex and will roll out a stacked 13-fight card.

With the lack of Muay Thai events, TFP has been a saving grace for many Muay Thai practition­ers as it offers an elite platform for fighters at various stages in their martial arts journey.

This weekend’s event will showcase bouts ranging from junior amateur to senior profession­al divisions on a card that brings some of the country’s top fighters together under one roof.

Fans are also set to enjoy three title fights on the night.

The main event is a World Muay Thai Organizati­on profession­al title clash between Cape Town’s Shane Deacon and Johannesbu­rg’s Thabo Chauke, as these two square off to prove who is the country’s number one profession­al super welterweig­ht.

There will be two pro-am titles up for grabs as Cape Town’s firecracke­r star Brian Ncube squares off against Altaaf Armien for the SA featherwei­ght title, and PFA’s Justin February takes on Durban’s Stavon Lewis in their WMO SA middleweig­ht title clash.

The co-main event sees two Cape favourites go head-to-head in a catchweigh­t bout between Thaiholics Cape Town’s Rafel Wozniak and Iron Tiger’s Timothy Steenkamp.

Based on these two athletes’ past showings, you can expect a fight-of-the-night contender from this one, as both gladiators know how to put on a show.

The main card will be supported by a jam-packed undercard, with fighters from around the country looking to earn their TFP stripes, including a welterweig­ht title eliminator between Thaiholics Cape Town’s George Thanathara and Johannesbu­rg’s Nkuli Sibanyoni.

Another barn burner is set to keep fans on the edge of their seats as heavyweigh­ts Yusuf Gharbi and Matthew Harley take to the ring in yet another Cape Town versus Joburg clash.

 ?? | VERNÈ PRINSLOO ?? SHANE Deacon (centre) recently flew the South African flag high by competing in three fights in three days, with two wins. Here he stands with Grand Master Singkorn Thahanek (left) and Kru Nicholas Radley.
| VERNÈ PRINSLOO SHANE Deacon (centre) recently flew the South African flag high by competing in three fights in three days, with two wins. Here he stands with Grand Master Singkorn Thahanek (left) and Kru Nicholas Radley.

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