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Boxing League: Outstanding bouts for week three
Owen Kibira throws a punch. PHOTOS/JOHN BATANUDDE
What you need to know:
It’s likely to be even bigger and better on Saturday at the Lugogo Indoor Arena as Top Boy Promotions lines up a series of potential thrillers.
The first two match days of the Uganda Boxing Champions League have been mouthwatering. The numbers, the action, have been spot-on.
It’s likely to be even bigger and better on Saturday at the Lugogo Indoor Arena as Top Boy Promotions lines up a series of potential thrillers.
Edward Mukwaya vs Ukasha Matovu, 67kg
When an upstart threatens to defeat a fighter he has always idolised, do not expect the latter to have any mercy. So, the battle lines are clear: Mukwaya, a freshman from Kiwatule, Nakawa wants to beat up Ukasha, a 2023 African bronze medalist and the biggest crowd-puller in the league.
The two will face off in the main act where power, passion and ambition meet on the canvas.
Mukwaya is nicknamed Pastor and he wants to “convert Ukasha from Islam.” Ukasha retaliated: “I punish him for posing as a middleman between man and God.”
Bashir Serugo vs Owen Kibira, 71kg
Kibira is a disgruntled fellow. He feels unloved, despite being the most stylish boxer currently. This pressure pushed him to surrender his welterweight league title, where Ukasha was his main rival, to go up to light middleweight.
This meant that he had to take a step back and fight in the National Open if he was to return to the league.
He was denied the Open gold medal but lost a hugely controversial split decision to youngster Nerrick Tumusiime, and his manager threatened to take the boy into paid ranks.
The rumour did not go away until he appeared in this week’s league fixture. Now the pressure is back. Kibira must do his best to avoid another upset against the little-known Serugo.
Ukasha Matovu (in red) against Muhammad Kawooya in the elite 67kg category.
Hussein Mulo vs Benon Balyegesa, 54kg
This is a battle of familiar foes. Mulo is the 2023 National Open Elite bantamweight champ. Now he entertains Balyegesa, one of the exciting youngsters, who has been promoted from youth to elite ranks.
The fans will be conflicted. Both hail from the Hoima Road bloc, mostly supported by the same lot which roots for Cobap and Namungoona Boxing Clubs.
James Baraka vs Aziz Ringo, 92kg
This may not be exciting to the eye but it may turn out to be a do-or-die. Ringo, a silver medalist at the recent National Open, is a bull in the ring. Sheer power and passion are all he’s got. If Baraka does not summon the seniority of someone who has once fought on the continent, it may end up as a bullfight, with two massive bodies chasing and hitting each other.
Swalla Halima vs Hamza Kemisi, Youths 48kg
I don’t know a Ugandan female boxer as electric as Halima. She has the art, speed, and power to inflict pain. What she lacks in size she has it in the heart because she is such a fearless fighter. She will even have impetus after joining the giant Lukanga Boxing Club. Little is known of Kemis but Halima may bring the best out of her.
