Junior-middleweight Darrin Rossouw came of age on Friday night as he delivered a brutal yet skilful performance to beat Jacques Muvud on points in Johannesburg on Friday night.
For a kid who started the year on the first ESPN Africa bill in February as a novice, the 22-year-old looked like a grizzled veteran dishing out and soaking up punishment over the action-packed eight rounds.
The win pushed Rossouw’s unbeaten record to seven wins, four by stoppage, but the way he fought this battle showed he has made the ring his home, and trading leather his favourite hobby.
The two hit each other almost non-stop for 24 minutes, but the difference was that Rossouw’s arsenal was more varied and superior, and he also showed an ability to ride punches on the inside.
“I think I’m maturing a lot more,” he said afterwards. But it was the brutality he displayed in dishing out the punches, as well as his enjoyment of the battle, that really caught the eye.
Muvud of the DRC, who dropped to 7-2-1, refused to give up, staying on his feet even when he seemed as if he were one punch away from being felled.
“I felt he could have stopped him, but he didn’t want to go down,” said Rossouw, who has graduated into the realm of genuine prospect.
He is a fighter with the potential for bigger things.
Rossouw has all the traits a warrior could want — heart, intelligence, chin and conditioning — though he will need to gain experience as he continues along his road, preferably avoiding some of the punches he took from Muvud.
Former IBF strawweight champion Dee-Jay Kriel, fighting for the first time in nearly two years, edged former South African flyweight champion Thembelani Nxoshe, who himself hadn’t fought since April last year and hadn’t won since mid-2017.
This was Kriel’s first bout on home soil in nearly five years, and he needed a couple of rounds to shake off the ring rust and find his rhythm.
In the main bout Johannesburg-based Emmany Kalombo won after Indian Shiva Thakran failed to answer the bell for the fourth round.
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Boxing
Young Darrin Rossouw delivers brutality and skill in hard fight
Image: SUPPLIED
Junior-middleweight Darrin Rossouw came of age on Friday night as he delivered a brutal yet skilful performance to beat Jacques Muvud on points in Johannesburg on Friday night.
For a kid who started the year on the first ESPN Africa bill in February as a novice, the 22-year-old looked like a grizzled veteran dishing out and soaking up punishment over the action-packed eight rounds.
The win pushed Rossouw’s unbeaten record to seven wins, four by stoppage, but the way he fought this battle showed he has made the ring his home, and trading leather his favourite hobby.
The two hit each other almost non-stop for 24 minutes, but the difference was that Rossouw’s arsenal was more varied and superior, and he also showed an ability to ride punches on the inside.
“I think I’m maturing a lot more,” he said afterwards. But it was the brutality he displayed in dishing out the punches, as well as his enjoyment of the battle, that really caught the eye.
Muvud of the DRC, who dropped to 7-2-1, refused to give up, staying on his feet even when he seemed as if he were one punch away from being felled.
“I felt he could have stopped him, but he didn’t want to go down,” said Rossouw, who has graduated into the realm of genuine prospect.
He is a fighter with the potential for bigger things.
Rossouw has all the traits a warrior could want — heart, intelligence, chin and conditioning — though he will need to gain experience as he continues along his road, preferably avoiding some of the punches he took from Muvud.
Former IBF strawweight champion Dee-Jay Kriel, fighting for the first time in nearly two years, edged former South African flyweight champion Thembelani Nxoshe, who himself hadn’t fought since April last year and hadn’t won since mid-2017.
This was Kriel’s first bout on home soil in nearly five years, and he needed a couple of rounds to shake off the ring rust and find his rhythm.
In the main bout Johannesburg-based Emmany Kalombo won after Indian Shiva Thakran failed to answer the bell for the fourth round.
Support independent journalism by subscribing to the Sunday Times. Just R20 for the first month.
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