Ex-footballer Khumalo makes history defeating Bopape to become SA champ

History was made on Sunday night in South African boxing when a former professional footballer with no amateur boxing experience was crowned South African middleweight champion in his 10th professional boxing match.

Phikelelani “Stinger” Khumalo from Mthwalume, south of Durban, whose Nguni name means “Perseverance”, is the history-making boxer. 

A former striker for Lamontville Golden Arrows and Maritzburg United in the MultiChoice Diski Challenge under-23 and reserve league who swapped his football boots for boxing gloves in 2020, Khumalo dethroned vastly experienced, hard-hitting champion John “Section 29" Bopape. His win came via a deserved unanimous points decision over 12 rounds at the Town Hall in Estcourt, KwaZulu-Natal.

The 27-year-old, left-handed Khumalo dropped Bopape from Alexandra township, east of Johannesburg, three times, in the second, fourth and 11th rounds.

Though he beat the mandatory eight counts, he lost six points in those rounds. At the beginning of a round, two fighters are level at 10 points each. A boxer who gets dropped loses two points and that round is scored 10-8. If he gets dropped again, he loses four points and the round is scored 10-6. A third knock-down in the same round warrants an automatic stoppage.

Bopape, 32, got up every time he was sent to slumberland while Khumalo piled up points. That situation put the champion under enormous pressure. Bopape needed a clean knock-down to retain his belt but it was not to be.

The inexperienced challenger was uncompromising as he piled on the pressure. Khumalo was dominant and you could hardly tell it was his first 12-round fight.

Credit to his team for the fighter's conditioning and fitness. He showed hunger and determination to succeed, and he went on and won the eagerly-awaited clash — a mismatch by any boxing terms — by a lopsided points victory.

Scores from three ring-side judges — Thokozane Ncube, Eric Khoza and Hlengiwe Ngubane — were 117-108, 118-109 and 117-109.

Bopape, who was bidding for the third defence of the national belt he won with a destructive 11th round knockout of supremely talented champion Nkululeko “Bull Dog” Mhlongo from Eshowe on April 29 2022, suffered his 11th defeat against 15 wins.

Bopape boasted two successful defences against Snamiso Ntuli and Ayanda Mthembu. The two challengers from KwaZulu-Natal did not hear the bell for the 12th and final round. Ntuli went down in the eighth, while Mthembu succumbed to the champion's power in one round.

Khumalo warned he would put a stop to Bopape's victories against challengers from his province, and the 33-year-old champion laughed off Khumalo's warning. Instead he described Khumalo as a “talkative kid”. Khumalo backed his big talk with action to improve to eight wins in 10 fights.

This bout headlined Starline Boxing Promotions' three-championship event. Khumalo first won the KwaZulu-Natal junior-middleweight belt in only his sixth pro fight in 2022 and added the ABU Sadc middleweights title to his collection in his ninth bout.

Estcourt's Town Hall was a happy hunting ground for South African flyweight champion Nkosingiphile Sibisi, who chalked up the second successful defence against mandatory challenger Zolie “Scientist” Miya at the same venue in KwaZulu-Natal where Sibisi was crowned in March last year.

Trained in Sbongile township in Dundee by Nathi Hlatshwayo, Sibisi remains unbeaten after 10 fights. Miya, whose career is guided by trainer Lucky Ramagole at Orlando east Gym in Soweto, dropped to 10 losses against 10 wins.

The scores from Sipho Zondo, Sihle Zungu and Bulelwa Mtembu read 118-110, 117-110 and 116-110.

Nkukululeko Mncube took the bragging rights as the KwaZulu-Natal female bantamweight champion after outpointing Asanda Mkhwanazi over eight rounds.

Mncube, from Mooi River, became the first professional female boxer to win a KwaZulu-Natal provincial boxing title.

Other results:

• Siyanda Makhoba defeated Sbongumusa Ngobeni on points over four rounds; and
• Xolani Mbatha beat Banele Ngceba KO in two rounds.

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