The 21-year-old is the youngest national champion in the history of women’s boxing in South Africa and remains undefeated after six professional fights.

That makes her one of the most exciting prospects in the country, but both she and her trainer, Alan Toweel, are determined to carefully plot her next move.

“I think if you burn the candle too quickly, you are going to burn out,” Promnick told SPORTSCLUB.

“I believe I am still a long way from reaching the peak of my career and that my boxing ability is going to grow exponentially in the years ahead.

“I am only at the beginning of my journey and I trust my coach (Toweel) completely. He has always had my back and he is the person in my corner that I trust most. I follow his lead. Whenever he believes I am ready for the next challenge, then I will be ready.”

Whether that will be a local fight or an international opponent remains to be seen.

“I will take on any opponent put in front of me, but until then I am focused on developing and improving,” she says.

“As for world titles, I know those opportunities will come and I believe I will achieve them. But when those opportunities arrive, I want to be at my very best and fully capable of taking them.

“Right now, I still believe there is more growth ahead of me before I reach that point.”

Promnick is delighted with her win over Nyanda, though she feels the fight was more one-sided than the scorecards suggested.

“I’m obviously delighted to get the win, but I don’t think the scorecards really reflected how the fight played out,” she says.

“I felt I controlled the contest and was the dominant fighter for most of the night, so I was a little disappointed by the scoring.

“That said, the most important thing is that I got the victory. I felt incredibly fit and strong in the ring, and I believe I performed to the best of my ability on the night.

“I’m proud of what I was able to bring into the ring from all the hard work and preparation that went into this fight. It’s a performance I can build on, and I feel like this is just the beginning. The future is exciting and I believe there is only more to come from here.”

Toweel is no stranger to producing champions and is full of praise for Promnick’s potential. He has been training her since 2021 and helped her turn professional in December 2024.

“When Tyla first came to boxing, I never told her she would become a champion. I never tell any fighter that when I first see them. In boxing, there are levels and tests that every fighter has to pass,” Toweel said.

“But as she progressed, I started noticing certain qualities. The first was her work ethic. Even after fights, I don’t have to ask her to come back to the gym. In fact, I have to stop her.

“After her last fight, she wanted to train straight away and I had to tell her to go home and rest for two or three weeks. That drive to become a champion is already inside her.

“The second thing is her willingness to learn. Boxing is the sweet science. You don’t learn boxing in a week or a month. It takes years to master the sport and become a champion. Tyla wants to learn every aspect of boxing and she is constantly trying to improve.

“The third quality is her perseverance. She can have a sore hand, a sore arm or a headache and still want to train. As a coach, I appreciate that mindset, but sometimes I have to protect her from herself and make sure she rests.”

Toweel adds that Promnick has the rare focus required to be the very best.

“What stands out most is her focus,” he says. “In the gym she is completely locked in. In the last 10 years, I haven’t trained many fighters with that level of concentration and commitment to learning their craft. She is obsessed with becoming the best version of herself as a boxer.”

Toweel runs what he describes as an “old-school” gym in Johannesburg and is continuing a family tradition that stretches back more than 100 years. He echoes Promnick in saying that the next step will be carefully considered.

“Our gym is small, humble and old-school. It is very similar to the type of gym where my grandfather trained world champions and where my father later developed champions as well,” he says.

“Right now, I want us to enjoy this moment because it is historic. Tyla has become the youngest female boxer in South African history to win a national title and that is something special.

“It was also a very tough fight, so I want us to enjoy the achievement over the next month or two before making any major decisions.

“After that, we will look at the options. We might defend the South African title, or we may look at an international opponent and perhaps challenge for an international belt such as a WBC International or IBO International title.

“But there is no rush. I don’t believe in throwing a fighter into something too big too soon. Tyla still has a lot to learn and, while she is incredibly mature for her age, she still needs time to develop emotionally and physically as a boxer.

“The talent is there, the dedication is there and the opportunities will come. The important thing is to make sure she is fully ready when those opportunities arrive.”

The post Tyla Promnick Taking Her Time To The Top appeared first on SportsClub.

The 21-year-old defeated Thobela ‘Mawaxa’ Nyanda by majority points decision after 10 rounds at the Emperors Palace in Kempton Park.

The Victory Park-born boxer maintained her flawless record of six wins from six fights, while Nyanda suffered two defeats and five wins.

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A post shared by Tyla Promnick (@ty_promnick)

After her triumph against Nyanda, Promnick moved up in the female minimum weight division rankings from 35th to 29th place.

Regionally, she currently holds the number 1 ranking in South Africa.

Promnick is under the guidance of trainer Alan Toweel Jr, who has trained many champions before her, including Zolani Marali, Tshifhiwa Munyai and Rofhiwa Maemu.

“I was impressed with her performance as Tyla dictated the fight from round one in what was a competitive fight,” her trainer Alan Toweel said.

“We were ecstatic to have been announced the winner and new South African champion.

“It is an honour to hold this prestigious belt. I believe Tyla is on the highway to world championship material.”

WATCH: Thobela Nyanda vs Tyla Promnick

The post Tyla “Duracell” Promnick makes history after mini-flyweight title triumph appeared first on SportsClub.

The South African had to overcome a first-round flash knockdown and several periods of heavy pressure against a man who never stopped advancing and had a dangerous right hand.
Paras was the aggressor throughout, walking Malajika down and forcing him to cover up and counter.

Malajika survived the knockdown, partly motivated by the shouts of his daughter ringside – “Go daddy! Go daddy!” – and by his goodwill trip to the WBC convention. He flew just hours after his victory to press the flesh and state his case to many of world boxing’s senior statesmen.

Malajika could barely rest as Paras set a furious pace and looked dangerous every time he winged punches from out wide. Fortunately his workrate and courage under fire proved telling and he ended strongly.

The one score of 117-110 was wide of the mark, but the other two (115-112, 116-111) were a fairer measure of the contest.

THYSSE ‘SURVIVES’ 10-ROUND WAR

In a contender for SA Fight of the Year, Brandon Thysse and Shervantaigh Koopman went to war over 10 riotous rounds in a semifinal for the “Survivor” junior middleweight series.

In the end the judges gave Thysse the decision (94-93, 95-93, 95-92), which was generous given that he was twice decked and never appeared to have the edge.

It earned Thysse bragging rights and also avenged an earlier defeat to his local rival, who must now rebuild after back-to-back defeats.

Koopman started strongly and when he caught Thysse in the second round with a cracking right hand, sending him sprawling, it looked like his opponent would be in for a long night.

Thysse was down again in the fifth, having been knocked out of his rhythm. But he came on strongly and walked Koopman down. Presumably this knocked Koopman off kilter as he soon opted for a diet of holding and tying Thysse up. It degenerated into a spiteful scrap and when Koopman was docked a point in the ninth round it wasn’t before time.

The fight concluded with wild action, which the big Emperors Palace crowd lapped up.
Given his luck at getting the nod, Thysse ought to have headed to the roulette table.

BIG ALBERTS DELIVERS THE GOODS

It’s taken just seven fights, but already Juan “The Gentleman” Alberts has built up a passionate following.

It’s not hard to see why. His deadpan persona, intimidating size and fighting ability make him a natural draw.

On Saturday, he varied his game to outwork Michael Pirotton of Belgium, winning a unanimous decision over eight rounds.

Fast and loose for a big man, Alberts was barely troubled. He easily absorbed several hard cracks, but dished out far more, not least in the fourth when the Belgian was on wobbly legs.

The fight became a mauling affair in the later rounds, which Alberts would have enjoyed. He needs the rounds and the work Piritton gave him will come in handy as he starts his third year as a pro in January.

ROARKE ROLLS ON IN STYLE

Roarke Knapp’s redemption continues.

The popular junior middleweight was expected to be tested by the big-punching Kagiso Bagwasi of Botswana, but he dominated his opponent to win the first-round match of the “Survivor” series.

Knapp worked the body viciously, whipping in hard shots to the body and alternating with punches upstairs to put a halt to Bagwasi’s unbeaten run.

By the third round the popular South African was well in control. Bagwasi, in turn, had lost the snap in his punches. Knapp bust him up and after four rounds his corner smartly withdrew Bagwasi.

Knapp will now contest the “Survivor” final against old foe Brandon Thysse.

KHUMALO BLOWS AWAY TAME VAN HEERDEN

After all the hype, a whimper.

The Phikelelani Khumalo-DonJuan van Heerden fight had percolated for months, and the enmity between the pair was real, but when the two finally met in the ring it flamed out after 80 seconds.

An innocuous jab beneath Van Heerden’s ribs appeared to affect him like a bullet as he went down, evidently in excruciating pain. Khumalo followed up with three loose shots, but there was no getting up for Van Heerden, who was promptly counted out.

Khumalo retained his national middleweight belt and also annexed the ABU championship, although where Van Heerden goes to from here is anyone’s guess.

There had been high hopes of a rousing contest, but the moment he weighed in two kilograms over the limit, the signs of disappointment were writ large.
And so it proved.

PETERS GETS THE JOB DONE IN A HURRY

There had been a fair bit of hype around the professional debut of SA amateur super heavyweight champion Ethan Peters.

Now we know why. The big man needed less than two minutes to blow Sibabalwe Mnani away, his jack hammer right hand doing its job.

Mnani wasn’t especially formidable, but the way Peters went about his business demonstrated a fighter with both the shape and the sizzle to make an impact. It’s early days, but Golden Gloves might have unearthed a special fighter.

The post ‘Magic Man’ digs deep on epic night for SA appeared first on SportsClub.

Fourie will face off against Lancelot Moyo in a highly anticipated 6-round showdown that promises to captivate boxing enthusiasts around the country.

With the fight just days away, the Johannesburg-based boxer is laser-focused and ready to step into the ring. “I am focused on what I need to do in the ring come fight day,” said Fourie. “I have trained hard over the past few months, so now it is all about executing what I have prepared for.”

Fourie’s preparation has been meticulous and intense. With a strong fight camp behind him, he has dedicated countless hours to honing his skills and perfecting his craft. His commitment and dedication are a testament to his unwavering determination to succeed.

Having made his professional debut in 2020, Fourie boasts an impressive record of 2 knockouts and 4 wins. When asked about his mental strategy going into a fight, Fourie emphasised the importance of focus and self-belief. “Mentally, I just need to be focused on this fight and not worry about anything else,” he stated. “Come fight day, I will showcase my God-given talent once again.”

The highly anticipated showdown between Fourie and Moyo will take place at Sun City, adding an extra level of grandeur to the event. With the fight being televised on Supersport, it is set to reach a vast audience, providing an excellent platform for Fourie to display his exceptional boxing skills.

At just 21 years old, Fourie has already made a significant impact on the South African boxing industry. As the current reigning Gauteng Lightweight champion and the youngest in his division, he is steadily making a name for himself. His talent and potential have been recognised, as he was nominated for the Prospect of the Year award in 2022.

With an unblemished record and a rank of 6th in the WBF World Rankings, Kaine Fourie is unquestionably a force to be reckoned with. His dedication, humility, and unwavering focus on his goals set him apart in the boxing world. “I am a hard worker when it comes to my goals and dedicate my life to this sport,” shared Fourie. “I dream big and definitely see myself as a world champion in the future, God willing.”

The upcoming fight at Sun City marks another significant step in Kaine Fourie’s boxing journey. As he steps into the ring on the 27th of May, boxing enthusiasts and fans alike eagerly anticipate witnessing his exceptional skills and determination in action.

The post Kaine Fourie set to showcase his talent in a thrilling Lightweight bout at Sun City appeared first on SportsClub.

That was 15 years ago.

Tyson, the world’s youngest and most feared heavyweight champion at 20 years-old, was an embarrassment to himself, the sport and his legacy in his final few years as a professional boxer.

The boxer, who in his prime, proclaimed himself the baddest man on the planet, ended his career as the saddest man on the planet with defeats against British journeyman Danny Williams and the even more mediocre McBride.

Williams, beaten three times before he knocked out Tyson in the fourth round in 2004, has lost 25 times since. He is still listed as an active boxer at 46 years-old, and this week offered to fight Tyson again.

McBride lost six times in eight fights after beating Tyson and was knocked out in his 46^th and final bout by Mariusz Wach.

Tyson hasn’t boxed since 2005, but this week’s released footage on social media revealed Tyson looking more like a 20 year-old heavyweight sensation than a stumbling 50-plus slob.

‘I saw a guy with the same speed, same power as guys 21 and 22 years-old,’ trainer Rafael Cordeiro told ESPN, who said talk of a Tyson comeback was not a joke or a marketing stunt.

Cordeiro was the man wearing the mits and feeling the force of the 53 year-old Tyson’s punches.

‘There is more video that will be released and it shows more power, more speed and more everything.’

Tyson told rapper T.I. on an Intagram Live chat that he wanted to fight again, if only exhibition fights and he told World Boxing News: ‘I want to go to the gym and get in shape, do some charity exhibitions, make some money, help some homeless and drug-affected mother-f——— like me.’

Tyson’s video footage and comments caused a global boxing flurry, with the romantics urging Iron Mike back into the ring, and former heavyweight champion George Foreman declaring that Tyson, if he could extend the 45 second video cameo into a year of training, could beat the best in today’s heavyweight division.

‘I was so happy. He looked like he had turned the clock back at least 20 years,’ said Foreman. ‘It starts with talk of exhibition fights but then the next thing you know you are fighting for the world title.’

Foreman speaks from experience, given his remarkable comeback to be crowned the oldest heavyweight champion at 45 years-old.

Foreman, knocked out by Muhammed Ali at the peak of his early career, returned to the ring as a 38 year-old and seven years later knocked out the 26 year-old heavyweight champion Michael Moorer in the 10^th round.

Foreman would retire at 48 years-old, but he reminded cynics that when he knocked out Moorer, the then champion had never lost in 35 fights.

Tyson, who in the past few years, has embraced a plant-based diet, admitted he was mentally in a place of unrivalled strength.

He again apologised to the sport of boxing for the way he disrespected it back in 2004 and 2005 and for how he failed himself as a warrior of the sport.

The appetite to train and fight is once again there and the video reminded people of his glory days and not those gory last few years.

The 46 year-old Williams was impressed with the 53 year-old Tyson footage because he said it mirrored the young fighter who terrified the heavyweight division.

‘I want to fight Mike Tyson again. I want to fight this Mike Tyson. My agents have been in touch,’ said Williams, who has never revelled in his knockout against Tyson and consistently conceded the fighter he beat was not the Mike Tyson so admired and awed in the sport. ‘I wouldn’t have lasted a round with Mike Tyson in his prime.’

Williams, all reverence when referring to the young Tyson, was equally rough when describing the Tyson he hammered. Tyson, he said, never lost when he was ahead and in charge of a fight but never came from behind to win.

‘Some of the great fighters are defined by how they withstood an onslaught and recovered to win big fights. Not Mike Tyson. Once he knew he was losing that was the end.’

If you want to fully appreciate Williams’s comments, there’s a nine minutes and 51 seconds YouTube video of Tyson’s six defeats. They all follow the same pattern. Once he ran out of puff and he couldn’t land early round knockouts, his jaw was glass and his legs were jelly.

Tyson’s boxing career is the cliché of two tales, but in a world where sports fans constantly seek a Hollywood ending, there would be nothing more magnificent than a 53 year-old Tyson becoming the oldest ever heavyweight champion of the world, 33 years after becoming the youngest heavyweight champion of the world.

Tyson fighting for the world title is a fantasy and nothing more than fiction.

More realistically, Tyson may just finally answer the question of whether he would have knocked out the king of four-round heavyweight exhibition fights Eric ‘Butterbean’ Esch.

‘Butterbean’, also 53, was a boxer, kickboxer, mixed martial artist and professional wrestler in a fighting career that ended with 97-24-5, with 65 knockouts and nine submissions.

Tyson, using game footage, demolishes ‘Butterbean’ with a second-round knockout in their eWorld Boxing Super Series bout.

‘Butterbean’ only ever fought one 10-rounder and that against former heavyweight champion Larry Holmes. Butterbean knocked Holmes down in the 10^th round but still lost on points. Holmes, for the record, was 52 years-old.

Tyson, at best, can turn the tragedy that was his final few fights into a triumph against the very same journeymen who belittled him in the ring.

Four-time heavyweight champion Evander Holyfield, at 57 years-old, has also announced a comeback to exhibition fighting. He wants to make it three from three against Tyson after beating him twice in succession in 1996 and 1996.

The Holyfield versus Tyson trilogy is more manageable and marketable than Tyson versus today’s biggest hitters.

Holyfield versus Tyson would be age appropriate. It could even be the start of a new seniors’ circuit.

This article first appeared in the Saturday edition of the Pretoria News (9 May 2020)

The post Tyson Madness appeared first on SportsClub.

Within minutes of Fury destroying Deontay Wilder with a seventh-round stoppage, some were likening the Gypsy King to Ali, in personality, in appeal and in quality as a heavyweight champion.

Don King, infamous as much as he is famous for being the grandest promoter of boxing’s biggest fights over the last 50 years, mocked those who dared put Fury’s name alongside Ali’s.

‘To compare Fury with the legendary, greatest of all time, float like a butterfly sting like a bee, your hand can’t hit what your eyes can’t see, is not a commentary situation. Something is wrong there. I’ll leave it to you. You be the judge people because I can’t understand that. That’s confusion to me, that must be a new disease, a new language that they’re speaking. I don’t quite understand it,’ King told FightHub.

The 88 year-old TopRank promoter Bob Arum, in Fury’s corner, likens his world champion boxer to Ali in terms of charisma and personality.

‘The fans love him. Ali would be great at delivering his one-liners before fights, which everyone loved. Tyson is always entertaining in what he says and does.’

King doesn’t dispute Fury’s spectator appeal, but he refutes emphatically any boxing comparison to Ali. Bernard Hopkins, who won multiple world titles as a middleweight and light heavyweight, shares a similar view.

‘Fury is a great salesman,’ he told BoxingScene.com ‘I think it is Ali (as a salesman), then him. But that is where the comparison ends.’

There is agreement among boxing experts that Fury is a very good boxer and an acknowledgement that Fury can only beat whoever is put in front of him, which is everyone who has fought him in a 29-fight history. Fury’s only blemish is a 12-round draw in the first Wilder fight – an occasion Fury is convinced he won comfortably.

Fury, unlike Ali, is an enigma.

Fury’s story in boxing is unrivalled in coming back from drug and booze addiction and a three-year ring absence to shed 50 kilograms and win back boxing’s most prized championship title. Fury suffers from depression and says he always will have this darkness suffocate his day. It is an ongoing fight he says he can never win. At best, he can manage the illness.

Fury is a giant at 6 foot 9 inches and his fighting weight of 126 kilograms when he battered the previously unbeaten Wilder is the third heaviest in a victorious heavyweight world title bout.

Lennox Lewis, the last heavyweight champion to unify all the divisions, pre the second Wilder fight said it surprised him that ‘a man that big hits that small’. Lewis said the second Wilder fight would define Fury’s standing in the history of heavyweight champions.

Post the fight, Lewis declared Fury up there as a worthy world champion deserving of applause and recognition.

Fury’s enormous size, his 85-inch reach and a chin that survived one of the biggest punches from Wilder in the first fight are his obvious strengths, but it’s his ring IQ that has many of the sport’s historians, trainers and participants comparing him to Ali.

Fury also has surprising mobility for his size and quickness, but he doesn’t have the speed of an Ali. Then again, no boxer could match the speed of Ali in his prime.

Boxing historians are consistent in rating fighters in three categories: records, common or like opponents and skills/styles, and every historian and Boxrec’s computer analysis, in which every fighter’s every move is recorded and processed, favour Ali at his best to be the best.

Mike Tyson, the youngest heavyweight champion of the world at 20, is recognized as one of the most informed students of boxing. Tyson is a fan of Fury, but he is a disciple of Ali’s.

‘Nobody beat Ali, prime against prime … not even me,’ said Tyson. ‘Ali is a f******g animal. He looks more like a model than a fighter, but what he is, he’s like a Tyrannosaurus Rex with a pretty face. And fast, Lord God, he was fast.’

The late Jimmy Jacobs, who owned the world’s largest fight film collection, measured Ali’s jab by an omegascope and not only was Ali’s jab so much faster than any heavyweight, it was even considerably faster than the legendary middleweight Sugar Ray Robinson. Robinson’s jab took 8.5 frames of film; Ali’s just 6.5.

Comparisons between Ali and Fury, say the experts, are premature because of who Ali fought and who Fury still has to fight.

Ali beat every top 100 fighter he faced, with the exception of Larry Holmes. The Asterix next to the Holmes fight is that Ali was 39 years-old and had already been diagnosed with Parkinson’s Disease.

Ali beat 14 world champions from 1962 to 1978 and won 22 Championship fights over a 14-year period. He also made 19 successful title defenses and he has a record 11-0 in rematches. Ali also fought and beat 10 of 11 Hall of Famers. Holmes was the exception.

Prime versus Prime is the only comparison that can be made with fighters from different eras and generations. Holmes, for example, won his first 48 fights in succession but in his last years was clubbed into submission in four rounds by Tyson and beaten by a few more in world title challengers. Tyson was in his prime; Holmes was a spent force.

Ali, according to BoxRec, fought three fighters in the top 10 of all time, 19 of the top 100 and 24 in the top 150, winning 27 of the 29 fights. Fury has fought three in the top 150 and won two of them.

Fury’s size and 85-inch reach has influenced many a lay person’s belief that he would hammer Ali, but boxing writer Anthony Mason reminded the ill-informed that Ali easily defeated Ernie Terrell, who stood 6 foot 7 and had an 82-inch reach.

Speed, as Ali preached, always beats size.

Rocky Marciano, who filmed the ‘computer fight’ with Ali in 1969 described Ali ‘as the fastest man on wheels,’ adding ‘no fighter who ever lived was that fast’.

The late Marciano, retired at 32 as the heavyweight champion of the world and unbeaten in 49 fights, said that the young Ali would have beaten ‘anybody, anytime, anywhere … and that includes me.’

Fury’s former trainer Ben Davison rejects the view of those who so easily dismiss the comparisons between his old charge and Ali.

‘Once Tyson (Fury) is finished with the sport, he’ll be looked at like Muhammad Ali. Ali and Tyson (Fury) have so many resemblances. In time, people will see that and appreciate it,’ said Davison.

(Lennox) Lewis, who beat up an older Mike Tyson in seven rounds and twice defeated Evander Holyfield, dismissed comparisons between Ali and Fury.

Lewis, a three-time world heavyweight champion, a two-time lineal champion and the last heavyweight to hold the undisputed title, conceded that Fury can box and that Fury’s size and style would make him a difficult opponent.

‘Fury would have given me some trouble because he’s so big and lanky, but I would break him down, probably by the 10^th round, and stop him.’

Lewis has never made such a statement about fighting and beating Ali.

The post Can Fury sting like Ali? appeared first on SportsClub.

The 40-year-old Filipino almost knocked down the 29-year-old American twice, in the seventh and ninth rounds.

Pacquiao won on all three judges’ scorecards – 117-111, 116-112 and 116-112 – to improve his career record to 61-7-2 with 39 knockouts.

He retained the lesser version of the WBA’s two welterweight belts and may have set the stage for a rematch with Floyd Mayweather, who watched the bout from ringside.

‘I really don’t believe my career is over. I proved it in my last fight against [Lucas] Matthysee,’ Pacquiao said. ‘And now I prove it again at the age of 40.’

Pacquiao with a hard left on Broner. He is looking 10 years younger tonight. pic.twitter.com/QKZNLC2YEP

— Harrison Klopp (@HarrisonKlopp) January 20, 2019

The post Pacquiao overpowers Broner appeared first on SportsClub.

Yet another major boxing occasion was spoiled by the schizophrenic scoring of the three judges as the highly-charged world heavyweight showdown between two unbeaten fighters, Deontay Wilder and Tyson Fury, ended in a draw. And so, the scene is set for a rematch.

Canelo Alvarez was the recipient of two terrible decisions by the Las Vegas judges when he was awarded a draw and then subsequently a points victory against Gennady ‘Triple G’ Golovkin in showdowns between two middleweights and this time the judges declared a draw between Wilder and Fury.

Rematch? Both big men immediately declared their desire to do it again. In the United States or England? ‘Wherever there’s more money,’ Wilder, in going the distance for only the second time in 41 contests, said.

The judges scored it 115-111 (Wilder), 114-112 (Fury) and 113-113. Two of the judges had the fight a six-point swing, which makes one question whether they were at the same venue.

All three judges scored the same in round one (Wilder), round five (Fury), round nine (Wilder), round 10 (Fury), round 11 (Fury) and round 12 (Wilder). Which means that rounds two, three, four, six, seven and eight were a lottery. From the comfort of the TV lounge I had Wilder the winner, 115-114.

Fury, who had become a respectable world heavyweight champion when beating Hall of Famer Wladimir Klitschko three years ago, must ge given huge credit for knocking his oversize body back into shape after spiralling into a life of drugs, depression and being banned by the governing authorities.

A giant of a man, the Mancunian ‘Gypsy King’, tipped the scales at 116kg, some 20kg heavier than the man they call ‘the Bronze Bomber’, while they were managed to eyeball one another, at 2.06m and 2.01m, respectively.

For large parts Fury taunted his opponent, making sexual gestures with his tongue, putting his hands behind his back and spreading his arms to invite Wilder into range, but the American didn’t take the bait.

The bookies had made Wilder the favourite, based on his concussive punching power which has starched 39 of his 40 previous opponents. And they’d made the line at nine rounds. And when Fury hit the deck in the ninth round, albeit having two glanced hooks bounced off his shaven head, it seemed that was the right call.

But there’s a giant heart beating inside the big Englishman and he got up to win the 10th and 11th rounds. Then, in the defining 12th, the 33-year-old Wilder, a bronze medallist at the 2008 Olympics, finally connected with his right hand. It could be argued that this was the first time in the contest that he’d connected flush and Fury went down like a sack of potatoes, his head bouncing off the canvas.

It was all over, it appeared, but somehow the 30-year-old summoned up huge reserves of strength and courage and got to his feet to beat the count. Had Wilder not got the final round knockdown then Fury would have won, because the 10-8 scoring of that round to Wilder allowed him to draw on the card of English judge Phil Edwards.

Fury was elusive all night and moves extremely well for such a big man. He also landed more punches and he swelled and reddened the area around Wilder’s left eye. Wilder seemed to have one plan: throw the left jab and then swing for the fences with his right hand. There was no Plan B and Fury is a quality defensive fighter and slipped the vast majority of the right hands coming his way.

The ‘other’ undefeated world heavyweight champion, Anthony Joshua, won’t have been unduly phased by what he saw, although he’s previously also tasted the canvas, so would be in danger if Wilder landed that right hand.

However, Wilder is definitely beatable – but then again, so is Fury. On the night though, the judges couldn’t separate them.

Photo: Harry How/Getty Images

The post Wilder, Fury slug it out to disputed draw appeared first on SportsClub.

The bout, fought at a furious pace and which left both warriors cut and bruised, was decided on a split points decision after 12 rounds, the judges’ scorecards reading 114-114, 115-113, 115-113. The final round was awarded to Canelo on two judges’ cards and had they gone with GGG, the decision would have been a draw to match their first encounter almost a year ago to the day.

Canelo, whose only defeat in 53 fights came at the hands of Floyd Mayweather in 2013, had served a six-month drugs ban in the past year, testing positive for six months after eating what he argued was ‘contaminated meat’ in February.

Betting leading into the rematch had Golovkin the slightest of favourites, after appearing to come off on the worse side of the scorecards in that draw last September. Another draw had been offered at odds of 16-1 and how close they came to repeating that.

Canelo this time round looked far better than he did a year ago. He controlled the centre of the ring for large parts of the contest and his big, roundhouse left hooks and clubbing overhand rights looked flashier than Golovkin’s straighter, down the middle punching.

There were no knockdowns in the fight and neither boxer looked like going down, despite absorbing some hammer blows, a testimony to both their great chins as well as superb conditioning.

The fact that the contest was held on Mexican Independence Day and that the crowd was largely in the corner of Canelo might have had an influence on the judges as the noise factor and reaction to punches – whether they land cleanly or not – is always something that can affect the scoring.

Afterwards, Golovkin walked back to his dressingroom, bleeding above his right eye, bruised on both cheeks, without performing the customary in-ring interview. His Mexican opponent however, also with a bad cut on the eyelid of his left eye, soaked up the attention and left the door open for a third fight.

Should that go ahead – and it would promise to be yet another thriller between two middleweights who are championship warriors – surely this time Canelo would be a stronger favourite. The Kazakh is 36-years-old and has been taken the distance in his last four fights, having stopped 33 of his previous 36 opponents, so perhaps he has lost his edge in punching power.

GGG is still a formidable fighter, but was breathing heavily between rounds, and looked to be chasing the fight after Canelo had seemingly punched his way into a points lead after eight rounds. The Kazakh, who was putting three middleweight belts on the line, the WBA, WBC and WBO versions, finished strongly but ultimately things were decided in that 12th round, another close one, which two of the judges scored to Canelo.

Photo: Tom Hogan/Getty Images

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Both 30-year-olds were at the proverbial crossroads of their careers, but it was Oosthuizen who came away with the lightly-regarded ABU cruiserweight belt with a 115-113, 115-113, 114-114 points verdict. With the scores being made public at the completion of the fourth and eighth rounds – and then after the final bell – it was the man they call ‘Tommy Gun’ who was leading from early in the fight.

But this was never a contest about the ‘title’; the performance and result were the only things that mattered. It wasn’t a spectacular show, which was understandable given both are essentially counter-punching southpaws, but the pattern of the fight was established early.

Oosthuizen is 1.93m tall, and enjoyed a 13cm height advantage and significant reach advantage over the man they call ‘The Rock’ and the smaller fighter simply wasn’t able to get within range often enough to trouble his opponent.

A slow start didn’t help Mchunu either, with the impression being that he was expecting Oosthuizen to tire later on in the bout and then take advantage. But Oosthuizen, a troubled individual from Boksburg, who was earlier in his career being groomed at world honours, came into the ring after a 16-month lay-off in good shape.

He used his fast hands and good footwork to his advantage around the ring and didn’t allow himself to engage at close quarters with Mchunu, who was losing for the fifth time in 24 contests and for the fourth time in his last seven fights.

Oosthuizen has been in trouble with the law on several occasions in the past and had spent time in jail between his previous fight – the only defeat of his 31 bouts – last May and on Saturday night. He knows he is at the last chance saloon and this was a good, if unspectacular, ‘comeback’.

It had been rumoured that the reward for the winner, now Oosthuizen, would be pitted against the unbeaten Kevin Lerena in what would be an intriguing showdown.

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