Naidjala, Moses move up WBO rankings

IMMANUEL “Prince” Naidjala and Paulus ‘The Hitman’ Moses were Namibia’s big movers after the latest World Boxing Organization (WBO) rankings were announced earlier this week.

Naidjala has moved up one position to fifth in the bantamweight category, while Moses moves up three places to sixth in the lightweight category.

According to a press release issued by boxing promoter Nestor Tobias on behalf of the MTC Nestor Sunshine Boxing and Fitness Academy, Naidjala’s move into the top five world rankings is an excellent achievement.

“It is one thing being rated in the top 15, but moving right into the top five is excellent. Naidjala is the current WBO Inter-continental champion and remains an exciting, talented fighter with one thing in mind and that is to become the best in the bantamweight division,” he said.

Moses, a former WBA world champion, now has a professional record of 38 wins and three losses, and according to Tobias, he remains one of Namibia’s most experienced and consistent fighters.

“The Hitman’s improved rating reflects his total commitment to boxing and I am delighted that he is making strides and edging closer to the number one position where he naturally belongs,” he said.

Moses, meanwhile, said he hoped to get another world title shot before the end of the year.

“I still have a lot of good boxing in me and I’m looking to become the best in the lightweight division again. I am happy with my current world rating and looking forward to more fights that will hopefully get me an opportunity for a world title fight before the end of 2017,” Moses said.

Walter “Executioner” Kautondokwa who is still undefeated after 13 fights drops one position down to ninth in the WBO middleweight rankings, while Sakaria “Desert Storm” Lukas remains at ninth in the WBO featherweight rankings.

Both boxers are still undefeated and hot prospects, with both already having collected continental titles. Kautondokwa is the current WBO African middleweight champion with a record of 13 wins, of which 12 came via knockout, while Lukas is the Interim WBO Africa featherweight champion and undefeated after 18 professional fights.

Paulus “The Rock” Ambunda, who previously held the WBO bantamweight and IBO super bantamweight world titles, is the only Namibian boxer that is currently ranked by more than one of the world’s leading organizations in the super bantamweight category.

He has moved down two places on the WBO rankings to 15th, while he is also ranked 15th by the World Boxing Council (WBC) and 11th by the World Boxing Association (WBA).

Jafet Uutoni, who lost a WBO junior flyweight world title eliminator fight against Angel Acosta of Puerto Rico on 11 February, has moved down to 11th on the WBO rankings.

Tobias, however, said they will move Uutoni down from the 49kg junior flyweight category to the mini-flyweight category of 47,6kg to improve his chances of winning a world title.

“While we are comfortable keeping him at junior flyweight, we have realized that his opponents are usually much bigger than him, because his body naturally does not blow up after the weigh-in. We have therefore taken a strategic decision to move him to mini-flyweight so that he can compete comfortably and competitively,” Tobias said.

Namibia’s International Boxing Organization (IBO) and International Boxing Federation (IBF) junior welterweight world champion Julius Indongo, is not ranked by the WBO.

Indongo is currently hard at work, preparing for his ‘Super Fight’ against Ricky Burns of Scotland.

Burns is the WBA world champion and all three titles will be on the line when the two champions meet in Glasgow, Scotland on 15 April.

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