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Johannesburg - Top South African boxing trainer Gert Strydom believes Alfonso “Terror” Tissen’s controversial defeat to unbeaten prospect Azizbek “AAA” Abdugofurov was an eye-opener for his fighter.
The African Boxing Union super middleweight champion locked horns with the Uzbek in an eight-round non title bout in Subang Jaya, Malaysia, last Friday. He lost the fight on a unanimous decision. Strydom believes his charge did everything in his power to win the fight.
“I’m very happy with the way my boy fought, despite the scorecards that painted a different picture. They underestimated us, expecting an easy night at the office, but we surprised them.
“That fight was a learning curve for us. Alfonso dropped the guy twice, but those knockdowns were ruled as slippery. We would have won if we were not fighting him in his own backyard. We might return in July for a title fight because they want more of Tissen,” he said.
Nkululeko “The Bulldog” Mhlongo, Hekkie “The Hexecutioner” Budler and Ryno “The Lion” Liebenberg have all lost fights on foreign soil.
Mhlongo suffered a controversial sixth-round technical defeat to Rafael Bejaran in Hamburg, Germany, for the vacant Word Boxing Federation world super welterweight championship in April.
Budler suffered a split-decision points loss to International Boxing Federation (IBF) light flyweight champion Filipino Milan Melindo in Cebu, Philippines, more than a year ago. Budler’s camp complained and the IBF ordered a rematch. However, Melindo opted to defend against Ryoichi Taguchi and lost the belt in September.
Liebenberg endured a heartbreaking sixth-round technical knockout defeat to German Vincent Feigenbutz in Ludwigsburg, Germany, last month.
Local boxing legend Lehlohonolo “Hands of Stone” Ledwaba believes a home-town decision is a normal practice in boxing all over the world.
“Here at home, if you come from a certain region, the ones who are hosting you, will oppress the visitor,” he said.
