Duncan Village champion Siyabulela Hem’s decision to take a stay-busy fight against Congelese Ardy Katompa backfired spectacularly when he not only suffered a stoppage loss for the first time but also surrendered two national titles in one go.
Hem, who is the reigning SA junior featherweight champion, retired at the beginning of the 10th round of his featherweight debut non-title clash against Katompa in a shock result at KuGompo City’s Orient Theatre on Friday.
The fight was hastily arranged to keep him active after his February 20 ring return was disrupted by the saga involving his challenge of KwaZulu-Natal’s Lindelani Sibisi’s SA featherweight title, which led to a dispute as to who between him and Makhanda-born, Mdantsane-based Bongani Fule should get first preference.
This saga left Boxing SA in a dilemma when it issued different rulings, with the body’s chief operation officer, Mandla Ntlanganiso, giving preference to Fule on the basis that he, as the mandatory challenger, submitted the challenge first, while the sanctioning committee argued that due to his status as the champion in another division, Hem deserved the nod.
BSA escalated the dispute to a tribunal hearing which, after both parties made presentations, ruled in Fule’s favour, with Hem’s camp subsequently saying it would seek legal recourse as it disagreed with the ruling.
However, the loss to Katompa has put paid to all the intentions to seek legal recourse, with Hem’s status as the champion in the junior featherweight division also in tatters.
While a loss in a non-title fight in the heavier division does not automatically relieve a boxer of an SA belt, the chances of Hem going down the division to defend his title are slim, as he appeared to be weight-drained to fight in the featherweight division in his clash against Katompa.
Hem appeared exhausted as the fight progressed, as he was unable to contend with Katompa’s swings, which landed with sickening regularity.
Swinging for the fences, Katompa sent Hem crashing into the ropes, which only propped him up in what should have been a knockdown at the end of the ninth round.
He managed to get up, but only on wobbly legs on the way to his corner, prompting his promoter Ayanda Matiti to jump into the ring and implore the fight to be stopped.
By jumping into the ring himself instead of Hem’s handlers, Matiti risked his fighter’s disqualification with only three minutes left to end the fight. But he insisted that allowing Hem back in the fight could have had tragic consequences.
“Allowing a weight-drained boxer to take more head punches could lead to serious brain damage, and I would not have been able to live with myself had that happened to Hem,” he said.
Matiti admitted that Hem’s status as the junior featherweight was over, though he was yet to relinquish the title. Hem was earmarked to headline Matiti’s tournament in June, but after the loss, he said he would move him to the September show.
Matiti said he still believed that Hem was a future world champion regardless of his shocking loss to Katompa.
“My belief in him winning a world title is unshaken despite the loss; all he needs to do is to fight in his natural weight.”
Daily Dispatch
Daily Dispatch
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