Blow-by-blow action at Emperors
World-class boxing action witnessed at the Uncivil War boxing tournament.
One of the year’s most anticipated boxing tournaments, Uncivil War, took fans by storm at Emperors Palace, on Saturday.
The four bouts witnessed on the night had fans pumping with an adrenaline-rush.
One of the fights that people had been longing to see was the night’s last bout, contested by Hekkie Budler and Simphiwe Khonco.
Long-considered South African boxing’s pound-for-pound king, Budler had two of his titles, WBA and IBO minimumweight, on the line.
With a bout scheduled for 12 rounds, fans witnessed world-class boxing.
Budler left no room for analysis in the first round, going straight for Khonco, who was pulling back during most of that round.
Only towards the end of the round did Khonco up his game.
Great blows were seen in the second round, as both fighters had seemingly studied each other’s techniques.
The damaging jabs from Khonco resulted in a cut under Budler’s left eye, a definite cause for concern.
The bleeding did not, however, stop him from pressing forward.
From the third round both fighters were bleeding and suffering as a result of each other’s firm and accurate punches.
These boxers were tactful and skilled and it was evident in each round.
In the fifth, Budler slipped to one knee after a knock from his challenger, but soon punished Khonco for that blow, cornering him jab-by-jab towards the end of the round.
Not much action was witnessed in the three rounds that followed and the answer to the shallow action was evident in round nine, as the boxers were seemingly worn-out.
This was heavily evident in the weakened throws and jabs that met no opponent but were rather flying in the air.
Budler’s fans got to their feet and kept shouting his name which motivated him into action.
The energy came back as Khonco launched retaliation upper cuts at the re-energised Budler.
Round 12 lived up to its description as “the last-minute round”, as all boxers try to score some last-minute points when the bout goes the full distance.
Any reserved energy and skills are witnessed in this round, as the boxers also try for a knock-out – but that was not on the cards for this bout.
The judges scored the fight 117-111; 115-113 and 116-112, in favour of Budler.
The other fightcard results are:
- Makosonke Zwengu vs Ryno Liebenberg – South African light-heavyweight title. Liebenberg won via TKO, two minutes and six seconds into the second round.
- Thompson Mokwana vs Roman Zhailoauv – international junior welterweight division. Mokwana won by split decision, with the judges scoring the fight 77-78; 77-75 and 77-75.
- Paul Kamanga vs Jason Bedeman – welterweight. Kamanga won via unanimous decision, with one of the judges scoring the bout 99-91 and the others 100-90.
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