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Nomeva, Nettey ready for war

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Xolisani Ndongeni. (Themba Mafokane)
Xolisani Ndongeni. (Themba Mafokane)

Cape Town - South Africa’s top lightweight boxer, Xolisani “Nomeva” Ndongeni, will not underestimate his Ghanaian opponent Razak Nettey on Sunday.

The two meet over 10 rounds in the lightweight division at Coetzenburg Stadium in Stellenbosch.

This will be the 27-year-old Nomeva’s first fight since he was voted South Africa’s best boxer at the Boxing SA awards ceremony in Durban in January.

Affected his ratings

Nomeva last fought in November, when he beat Mexican Juan Garcia Mendez by a unanimous points decision over 10 rounds in California.

After that win, Ndongeni was promised regular action in the US with the hope of making him an established star.

But nothing has happened. This has affected his ratings, as he has now slipped down the World Boxing Association ratings from second to fifth.

To exacerbate matters, Nomeva – who previously also held the International Boxing Organisation title – relinquished his title after undertakings of relaunching his career in the US reached fever pitch.

Instead, his boxing career has now stalled. Now he has to prove to Nettey that he has what it takes to make the grade.

“This man is tough and he will be here to fight. I’ve seen a few of his fights on DVD and he can really throw leather. There is no way that I will underestimate him because he is a puncher, as his record suggests,” said Ndongeni.

Nomeva, who will be having his first fight in the Western Cape, said he had trained hard for the fight.

Knockout defeats

“Look, I can’t afford to disappoint my Western Cape fans. I will win by a knockout”, he promised.

Promoter Mzoli Tempi also reckons Netty is no pushover.

“I’ve seen a number of his fights and he carries a punch. I didn’t make a mistake by bringing him here because he is going to give boxing fans a bloody good fight,” said Tempi.

A look at their credentials shows that both are hard hitters with almost similar fighting styles. Ndongeni is undefeated in 22 bouts with 11 knockout wins under his belt.

Nettey knocked out 15 of his 20 victims and has suffered two knockouts defeats.

Nettey is working his way up to emulate legendary Ghanaian countryman Azumah Nelson, who previously held the World Boxing Council super featherweight championship belt for a long time.

He retired from boxing in 2008 after an illustrious boxing career.

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