Champion Campbell impresses in title comeback win
In what was possibly the best fight of the afternoon, Congo international Marios Matamba outlasted DRC’s Clement Kamanga to win the vacant IBF Africa junior-welterweight title.
South African super-middleweight champion Rowan Campbell showed big match temperament when he came back from a threatening knockdown to win the vacant IBO All-Africa super-middleweight title with a 10-round unanimous decision win.
Campbell defeated Alex Kabangu at Emperors Palace on February 24.
The scores of 95-94, 97-92 and 98-91 solidified the champion’s status as the middleweight to beat in the country.
In a close and entertaining affair worthy of its main-event status, the Cape Town-based Kabangu threw the first meaningful punch when he dropped Campbell with a short right to the jaw.
Campbell, however, possibly spurred on by the fear of compromising his champion status, dug deep to beat the count and managed to hold on against the aggressing Kabangu.
Unfortunately for the latter, his stamina let him down in the later rounds as the momentum swung Campbell’s way.
To his credit, Kabangu held on until the end but had not done enough to upset the odds.
In an undercard boxing lesson, up-and-coming Tristan Truter, who trains out of the Hammer Gym in Boksburg, landed a sweet connection to knock Simphiwe Ntombela out of the contest.
Truter emerged as a TKO winner in the second round following a largely dominant showing where he spent the first round and the beginning of the second measuring his opponent – until the perfect moment presented itself.
Truter said: “He (Ntombela) is a good boxer and it was nice to be in the ring with him. I give my performance a 6/10 because I can do much better. My hands weren’t as up as they should’ve been and I could’ve landed more shots.”
In the afternoon’s other two title fights, Jabulani Makhense outboxed and outpointed WBF Intercontinental junior welterweight champion Xolani Mcotheli to claim the vacant WBA Pan-African junior-welterweight belt.
Referee Deon Dwarte stepped in to Kamanga’s rescue in the midst of unanswered combinations from Matamba inside the first minute of the seventh round.
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