Boxing tournament held at Emperors Palace

Boxing fans were treated to an extravaganza of top-class boxing at Emperor Palace on the weekend of December 10 and 11 when the Cracker Jack Box and Dine Tournament took place on Saturday evening and the Young Guns bill on Sunday afternoon.

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Edenvale’s Beaven Sibanda went toe-to-toe for the strawweight contest against Sebela Nkosi of Middleburg on the undercard of the Young Guns tournament.

The Zimbabwean-born boxer proved too good for Nkosi, beating the latter on a unanimous points decision, taking Sibanda to his fourth win in as many fights.

Sunday’s win takes the diminutive Edenvale boxer to 4-0.

WBA Pan African middleweight, African Boxing Union junior middleweight and IBO World junior middleweight champion Roarke Knapp of Edenvale produced a solid performance on Saturday evening to claim a unanimous points decision victory over the experienced Dante Jardon (34) of Mexico.

Knapp walked off the victor in their 10-round junior middleweight bout after the judges scored the fight 97-92, 97-92 and 96-93 in the Edenvale fighter’s favour.

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After losing to Alberton’s Brandon Thysse on Saturday evening, the Angolan-born WBO African welterweight and WBF International junior middleweight champion Cristiano Ndombassy got a few words of encouragement ringside from South African boxing greats, Welcome ‘The Hawk’ Ncita of East London and Dingaan ‘The Rose of Soweto’ Thobela of Edenvale.

Ndombassy and Thysse faced each other in a 10-round middleweight contest on the undercard of the Cracker Jack tournament with Thysse, the IBO All-Africa and WBA Pan African junior middleweight champion victorious after the judges scored the fight 98-93, 96-95 and 97-93.

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Up-and-coming South African junior middleweight boxer Roarke Knapp (24), who boxes out of the Brian Mitchell Academy in Edenvale, was in top form on Saturday evening beating the experienced 34-year-old Mexican Dante Jardon.

Knapp, the WBA Pan African middleweight, African Boxing Union junior middleweight and IBO World junior middleweight champion faced Jardon in a 10-round junior middleweight contest and walked off the victor after the judges scored the fight 97-92, 97-92 and 96-93 in the Edenvale fighter’s favour.
This victory takes Knapp’s record to an impressive 15-1.