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On Friday evening, March 23, at
the Edenvale Community Centre in
Johannesburg, South Africa, two
World Boxing Federation (WBF)
Championship fights topped a
bill labelled “Unstoppable”,
promoted by Real Steel
Promotions.
Undefeated shooting star Emmany
Kalombo came of age in what will
unquestionably be a front-runner
for Fight of the Year in South
Africa, winning the vacant WBF
Intercontinental Super
Welterweight title with a
vicious knockout of South
African Champion Nkululeko
Mhlongo.
It was toe-to-toe action from
the start, with both men going
all out and determined to leave
everything in the ring. The
older and much more experienced
Mhlongo followed the pace of
Kalombo, and was actually ahead
on two of the cards when send
crashing by an explosive
overhand right in round five.
Caught cleanly on the jaw,
Mhlongo was out cold, and
Kalombo made a massive statement
by being the first man to stop
“The Bulldog”. Now 9-0 (9), the
South Africa-based Congolese
jumped up several levels by
eventually destroying the
favoured Mhlongo with one punch,
and is certainly one to keep an
eye on.
Mhlongo, 16-6 (12), a former WBF
Intercontinental titlist and
world title-challenger, was
riding high after defending the
South African crown with a
stoppage of another unbeaten
prospect, the 9-0 Brandon
Thysse, in his most recent
outing. Now its back to the
drawing board after the most
crushing defeat of his career.
In an all-South-African
match-up, former world class
amateur and 2008 South African
Olympian, Jackson “M3” Chauke
also showed his power and
performed brilliantly in
stopping Sihle Jelwana in four
rounds to lift the vacant WBF
International Flyweight title.
Chauke, now 15-1-1 (11), floored
his foe in the first round, but
Jelwana came back strong and
fought well in the second and
third. In round four Chauke
scored another knock-down, and
this time Jelwana, who dropped
to 8-4 (6), was not able to
convince referee Ben Ncapayi
that he should be allowed to
continue.
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