Top boxers Charles Shinima and John John Ndjolonimus lived up to their promises as they successfully defended their titles on Friday night.
Shinima was defending his World Boxing Organisation Africa (WBO) belt against Idd Pialari from Tanzania, while Ndjolonimus fought Joseph Maigisiya of the same country to retain his WBO International Super Middleweight belt.
The two boxers were the main attractions on the night of the ‘Together as One Part 10’ boxing bonanza which took place at the Ongwediva trade fair grounds.
Shinima extended his record to 17 wins from 17 fights following his victory over 12 rounds.
Ndjolonimus stopped his opponent in the fourth round with a technical knockout (TKO) to extend his record to 17 straight wins.
Speaking after the bout, Ndjolonimus said it was quite a tough contest as his opponent didn’t show any signs of giving up in the first two rounds of the bout.
“He is a very good boxer, and I respect how he conducted himself in the ring. One thing I told myself was to come out of that ring victorious and successfully defend my title in front of my people, which I promised earlier,” he noted.
Looking ahead, the WBO international super middleweight champion said he wants better fights.
“The job is done here, and I trust my promoter will now secure a better fighter for me next. But for now, we will go back to the gym and continue working hard and staying in shape. I believe and trust my promoter, Sunshine, will come up with an exciting bout for me,” he added.
Meanwhile, Shinima shared similar sentiments.
“We only came here with one mission, which was to defend our titles, and we did that. Going forward, we will wait on our next bigger bouts, which I believe Sunshine Tobias will be working on now,” he said.
Also fighting in the main supporting bout, Immanuel Mungandjela defeated Hedison ‘Bulelo’ Nghipondoka by unanimous decision in their welterweight category.
In a super bantamweight six-rounder, Andreas Mweyeno overcame Shonena Paulus, with Sam Shikukutu proving to be a better boxer as he triumphed over a stubborn Sam Mathews. In the welterweight four-rounder, Johannes Frela was victorious over Stefanus Joshua, while Frederick Nghutunanye stopped his opponent Nelomba Joshua in the second round in the featherweight category.
Giving his take on the bout, promoter Nestor ‘Sunshine’ Tobias said he is happy with the whole event. However, he expressed his disappointment in the delays on the night, but promised to honour the agreement for some of the bouts which were omitted on the night due to time.
“There were a few technical issues that led to hiccups in the beginning. But I am happy that the boxers came out to showcase their talent,” he observed.