Said conduct appalls Meroro

NAMIBIAN cruiserweight fighter Vikapita Meroro feels Said Mbelwa's “unprofessional behaviour” is enough to warrant a ban from professional boxing after defeating the Tanzanian through disqualification on Saturday night.

Mbelwa was eliminated from the gripping contest in the fourth round for unsporting conduct and repeatedly ignoring warnings from referee Timo Haikonda.

After enduring a barrage of blows in the third round, the enraged east-African head-butted Meroro, which subsequently resulted in a point deduction and a final caution.

Following another failed attempt at a head-butt, the referee called-off the contest after one minute and 28 seconds into the fourth round.

Meroro, fighting in front of a sparse home crowd at the Winnie Du Plessis Secondary School hall in Gobabis, said his opponent's petulance denied him an outright victory.

“That was not good at all. I'm very disappointed,” Meroro told reporters after earning a fourth consecutive stoppage decision since losing to German Juergen Braehmer in April last year.

“What he did was unprofessional. It's not sport. Maybe he should be banned from sport,” he added.

Said's equally disappointed trainer Peter Opiyo feels his boxer's rash reaction was sparked by constant cheap shots to the back of his head.

But Opiyo felt the outcome was justified, and likened Saturday's incident to the infamous 1997 WBA Heavyweight Championship fight between Mike Tyson and Evander Holyfield which ended after the former bizarrely bit off part of his rival's ear.

“The decision is not unfair because I talked to my boxer to cool down,” said Opiyo. “He didn't follow the instructions. We will sit down with him and tell him that this is sport and he should not be getting angry.”

Meroro said the blows were accidental and that Said should have reacted like a professional.

“When I'm hitting, sometimes I cannot see. It's for him to complain to the referee. I was not doing it on purpose. At least I was punching and maybe I missed my target but he was definitely wrong. It is unprofessional behaviour,” Meroro said.

UNDERCARD

The night's main supporting bout saw Jatoorora Tjingaveta score a unanimous points decision over Tommy Hango in a welterweight contest, while debutant Rafael Iita defeated Kapena Hamutenya on points in the same weight class.

However the performance of the night arguably belonged to Steven Shimbonde, whose display of speed, power and precision left Jason Mashala in a daze during their brief welterweight showdown.

Shimbonde's dominance left referee Lazarus Nainda with little choice but to end the fight after just two minutes and 13 seconds into the contest.

Promising super bantamweight fighter Natanael Kamati also outclassed his opponent Abner Mwafangeyo to record a comfortable points victory, while Onesmus Nekundi and Isaac Anyela fought out a draw in their matchup in the same weight class.

Hard-pinching middleweight Walter Kuutondokwa scored an impressive second-round TKO over a hapless Immanuel Hamatwi, who was making his professional bow, as another debutant Natanale Sebastian recovered from a nervy start to beat Rocky Haraseb on a TKO in the second round of their featherweight fight.

Meanwhile the evening's first fight saw Manfred Haibanga claim a unanimous decision at the expense of Sebby Sheuyange.

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