A great night for Namibian boxing 

Mateus ‘The Beast’ Heita and Philippus ‘Jon Jon’ Ndjolonimus both won WBO African titles in impressive style in a great night for Namibian boxing on Saturday.

Heita beat Clement Loko of Benin on a fourth round knockout to win the WBO Africa featherweight title, while Ndjolonimus beat Snamiso Ntuli of South Africa on a tenth round knockout to win the WBO Africa super middleweight title. 

The bonanza presented by the MTC Nestor Sunshine Boxing Academy was billed as Heita’s redemption after he suffered his first professional defeat to Bruce Carrington of the United States in July, and he certainly redeemed himself with a dominant performance. 

The first round was quite even with both boxers landing some good shots, but Heita upped the tempo and put Loko down for the count of eight by the second. 

In the third, Loko landed a big punch but Heita took it in his stride and continued to force the pace. It was not long before the end came as Heita put Loko down for good by the fourth round as the referee counted him out, 2:28 into the round. 

It was an impressive comeback for Heita, who’s record now stands at 15 wins and one loss, while Loko’s record stands at 12 wins, one loss and one draw.

After the fight Heita said he was confident of victory. 

“I knew I’d take this guy out, I knew it wouldn’t even reach round six because he’s not at my level. I’m waitihng for better things so now I’m back and we go again,” he said. 

“I’d like to thank my fans who came out tonight to support us. I really appreciate them and they must keep on supporting us because without them we are nothing,” he added. 

Promoter Nestor Tobias thanked all the fans who turned out. 

“Thanks to all the fans who came out tonight – of course we need a Fifa approved soccer stadium but I think we saw tonight that we also need a bigger boxing venue,” he said. 

“This kid worked very hard, training day and night, running in the mountains, doing sprints and sparring – it was very tough, but today he got the prize for all that hard work,” he added. 

“We saw a great fight between Jon Jon and Ntuli – that’s the fight of the year in Africa and Mateus Heita has now bounced back from the loss in America. This kid is ready to fight for the world title but we will keep on pushing so that he can become the mandatory challenger to get a shot at the world title.”

In the main supporting bout, Ndjolonimus beat Ntuli after a tremendous fight with fortunes swinging to and fro.

Ndjolonimus came out as the aggressor, taking the fight to Ntuli and landing some big shots in the opening rounds.

The South African, however, fought back bravely and by the fifth round started taking the initiative with his sharp jab.

Both boxers were visibly tired by the middle rounds but they upped the tempo, slugging it out toe to toe to cheers from the crowd. 

The fight was still in the balance by the eighth round, with both boxers landing some big shots, but Ndjolonimus hit out Ntuli’s mouthguard in the ninth and then finally put the South African down, about a minute into the tenth round to complete a stunning victory. 

The win saw Ndjolonimus reclaiming the WBO Africa super middleweight title while his record now stands at 20 wins and one loss. Ntuli’s record now stands at 9 wins, 6 losses and 1 draw. 

Naftalie Sheyapo, meanwhile, won the national heavyweight title after beating Vikapita Meroro on a unanimous points decision over 10 rounds. 

Erastus Shapaka won the national super flyweight title after beating Simon Festus on a unanimous points decision over 10 rounds. 

In a lightweight fight Denzel Silvanus beat Samwel Mbatumbange on a third round knockout; while in a bantamweight fight Joiy Nangolo beat Fabian Lameck on a first round knockout. 

Elias Moongela beat Phillipus Mateus on a majority decision in a bantamweight fight; Paulus Fillipus beat Johannes Hafeni on a first round knockout in a super bantamweight fight; and Johannes Frela and Jonas Jonas fought to a draw in a welterweight fight. 

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