Ndou asks ‘How the heck did Malignaggi‚ who punches like my 2-year-old granddaughter‚ drop me?’

June 16 has mixed emotions for former IBF and IBO world boxing champion‚ and now Australian-based practicing attorney‚ Lovemore “Black Panther” Ndou.

The emigrant of these shores reminisced with TimesLIVE about the famous day in South African history that was also the date that saw him lose his IBF belt under controversial circumstances to American Paul Malignaggi in the USA in 2007.

Ndou – who owns his law firm in Sydney‚ and has lived in Australia since 1995 – believes he could never have followed his chosen profession had it not been for the sacrifice of young lives made on the famous day in the Soweto Uprising of 1976.

“June 16 will always be memorable to me for two reasons‚” Ndou said.

“A series of protests led by black school children in South Africa resulted in the death of hundreds of young black Africans. This profoundly changed the socio-political landscape in South Africa in many ways.

“For example‚ in years to follow this resulted in the death of the Bantu Education system‚ which in many ways was a system associated with derogatory connotations and designed in an effort to continue to degrade black Africans and treat them as second citizens in their own country.

“Today I look at my life and my profession as an attorney in Sydney and wonder whether if it wasn’t for the Soweto Youth Uprising‚ would I be practicing law in a foreign country and in fact run my own law practice? I do not think so.

“With the introduction of the Bantu Education System there was also a requirement‚ or demand‚ so to say‚ that ‘Afrikaans’ be the medium of education in black schools.

“I have nothing against Afrikaans or Afrikaans-speaking people. Some of my best friends are Afrikaans-speaking people and I am glad that I studied the language up to my matriculation. However the language has its limits as far as international communication and the global community is concerned.

“Over the years I have seen a lot of educated people‚ for example‚ doctors and lawyers who were educated in their country of birth in their first languages other than English‚ migrate to Australia and become cab drivers instead of continuing in their professions due to their lack of English skills.”

“This in turn puts a lot of pressure on them. Some‚ of course‚ would have to attend to English classes before they can return to their professions. Hence I say I respect those students who lost their lives during the Soweto Youth Uprising and in my eyes they will always remain my heroes.”

June 16 has a second reason to be always be memorable to Ndou.

“It has to do with my World Title defence against Paul Malignaggi in Mohegan Sun Casino‚ Uncasville‚ Connecticut‚ USA.

“This was my first defence of my IBF Junior Welterweight world title. Not only did I have to fight Malignaggi on that night but I had everything else going against me‚ from the referee‚ the judges‚ the crowd and anything else you could think of.

“The referee‚ Eddie Cotton‚ was my biggest opponent if not my nightmare on the night. He wouldn’t allow me to fight my fight. That is‚ fight on the inside. To put it in context he invariably broke clinches immediately and didn’t allow me to implement my plan of fighting on the inside.

“In the third round‚ he warned me for kidney punching during clinches. In the fifth and 11th rounds he gave me unnecessary warnings alleging that I was rabbit punching. In the sixth round‚ he deducted one point alleging that I was rabbit punching.

“In the ninth round‚ I slipped and he ruled it a right hand and gave me an eight-count costing me two points‚ which I desperately needed at the time.

“Now‚ I have been in the ring with some of the hardest punchers in boxing including Miguel Cotto‚ Kermit Cintron and Saul Alvarez (Canelo)‚ who was almost 10kg heavier than me when I fought him‚ and none of them could put me on my ass.

“How the heck did Malignaggi‚ who punches like my two-year-old granddaughter‚ manage to drop me? At the end of the fight two judges never gave me a round. I didn’t have a scratch on my face‚ he had two big cuts.

“How did he get cut and I couldn’t even get a round? Only the politics in boxing can explain it‚ I guess. I was an African/Australian fighting in the USA against the local fighter and there was no way I was going to walk away with my title unless I knocked Malignaggi out.”

Last month Ndou attained one of his finest achievements outside a boxing ring‚ graduating with another master’s degree in Master of Applied Law (Family Law).

“I intend to return to South Africa in the future and go into politics‚” he said.

“I would like to help make a change in South Africa for all South Africans irrespective of colour as I believe South Africa is for all South Africans irrespective of colour or race.”

- TimesLIVE