White-collar boxing-my experience

Last night I’ve attended my first boxing match and it was nothing like I’ve envisioned it to be. On the other hand I think I might be better suited to watch cage fighting with my imagination but I had fun nevertheless. Armed with my non-existent knowledge of boxing, we arrived at Scarlet Ribbon where the event was taking place and you could hear the excitement at the door already. The event was titled “White collar boxing” which is basically a form of boxing in which men and women in white-collar professions train to fight at special events and most have no prior boxing experience.

The atmosphere inside was infectious, loaded with excitement and adrenaline. It was already packed when we arrived with two bars that caters for your alcoholic needs and ample space to rest your weary feet. The MC for the evening, Stephen Castle (who bears a strong resemblance to my favourite wrestler, “Stone Cold” Steve Austen) also happen to be the WBE (World Boxing Entertainment) President and they’ve organised the event.

Every fight consisted of 3 rounds of 2 minutes each and the announcer for the evening was Themba with the lovely ring ladies, Angela and Jamie. The first fight commenced at 20h00 between Sandile Buthelezi from BFC for the red team and Jadri Pieters from The Natural Team in the blue corner. This was their 60+ kg Lightweight division with Kyle Bothma as the referee. To be quite honest, I’ve walked in there with high hopes, not quite sure what “White Collar Boxing” was or how much blood to expect. No blood was shed in this fight and it went okay, I didn’t feel like jumping out of my seat but I enjoyed it. I felt that the punches weren’t as powerful as it could be and they were dancing around each other throughout.

Second fight between Kevin “The Rouxster” Roux from Kevin’s Garage and Anthony Heiss from Ultimate Fitness was quite good bearing in mind that Kevin’s only been fighting for 6 months. Footwork was a bit better and the punches looked like there were some power behind it. These guys were from the 64+ kg Welterweight division and it really set the tone for the rest of the fights.

Next up in the 81+kg Cruiserweight division we had Michael “Twinkletoes” Torres from Durants vs Jake Wakeley from Pound 4 Pound in the blue corner. Shepherd Moshiya took over from Kyle as referee and the fight commenced. Definitely less dancing around and they followed through with the punches. Fight had to be stopped in the second round as Jake failed to protect his face and ended up with a bloody nose.

In the 69+ kg Middleweight division we had Suandi Rakim representing CAMA vs Ross “Farlz” Farley from Durants. Ross was definitely a crowd favourite and landed some really good punches under much encouragement from the audience. Suandi’s defense was really good and this is one fight I really enjoyed.

The last fight before the interval was between Lecture “Mafia” Ntshangase representing Topbox with the entrance song “Blessings” by Big Sean ft Drake and Khanye West vs Sifiso “Sniper” Buthelezi from BFC with “Umlilo” by Big Nuz. I remember the songs because I actually sang along as they made their entrance. This was my second favourite fight of the night as they had some really good combinations and fought with a lot of heart. They made the most of the time being made available to them and I really wanted to see more.

A brief interval for bathroom, smoke or drink top-ups.

The next fight in the 81+ Cruiserweight division between James “The Machine” Sey from Durants and Johnny Anthony from Sweat Box were also one of my favourites. I saw James during the interval backstage with his coach doing last-minute warm ups and he looked really good. These were 2 of the older fighters and the experience they have under their belts were quite evident during this fight. Deliberate punches were the order of the night and I was kinda sad when it was over.

My absolute favourite fight of the night had to be between Nic “The Nibbler” Northcote representing Cassius Bayloi and Nthando Moyo from Topbox in the 69+ kg Middleweight division. There were a lot of focus and aggression from both sides and it was an absolute feast for the eyes. Nthando send Nic through the ropes and he injured his ribs, he bravely got up to continue the fight but it had to be stopped because he was in obvious pain.

At this stage it was already after 22h00 and I had work in the morning so unfortunately I had to leave. The 2 remaining fights were between Ross van Dongen from Pound 4 Pound and Rory “The Raging Bull” Brown from Bull Ring in the 90+ kg Heavyweights division and Mark “The Thinker” Farah from Topbox and Andrew “The Samurai” Savvides from Durants in the 69+kg Middleweight division.

I have to admit I had more fun than I thought I would and are definitely looking forward to the next one. These events take place once a month with Scarlet Ribbon as the official venue. Follow WBE Promotions on Facebook for updates or visit their website here.