Nigeria’s light weight boxing champion, Olaide Fijabi has admitted that his Ghanaian opponent, Kwabena in the recently held GOtv Boxing Night was the toughest fight yet in his career. Speaking in an exclusive interview, the talented boxer who is also known as Fijaborn in the boxing circles, remarked that the fight was indeed, a good […]
via FIJABI ADMITS GHANAIAN OPPONENT WAS TOUGH – By Akeem Busari — newfanzoneblog
Fans coming to watch top class boxing action at GOtv Boxing Night 6 have been assured of adequate security in and around the venue of the event. The assurance was given by Mr. Jenkins Alumona, Managing Director/ Chief Executive of Flykite Productions, organisers of the boxing tourney.
Alumona explained that top-class security, which has been a feature at every edition of the event, will not be relaxed. “This edition falls on Good Friday and we are expecting families to come and enjoy boxing. The security will be tight as it has always been. One of our partners, KSquare Security, is the leading provider of security services for big events in the country. Fans have nothing to fear. The security arrangements will be top-notch,” he said.
GOtv Boxing 6, holds on 25 March at the Indoor Sports Hall of the National Stadium in Lagos. It guarantees the best boxer on the night a cash prize of N1million. The event will feature two title fights and three national challenge duels.
The biggest of the fights will see Nigeria’s Abolaji “Afonja Warrior” Rasheed take on Ghana’s Adjei Sowah in a West African middleweight title fight. In the other big fight, crowd favourite, Olaide “Fijaborn” Fijabi will attempt to win the West African light welterweight when he takes on Djamiou Ekekpo of the Rebublic of Benin. Also, there will be a national lightweight challenge bout between Otto “Joe Boy” Joseph and Hogan Jimoh Jnr., son of former champion, Hogan Jimoh aka Atomic Bomb.
The three remaining fights will parade five of the graduates of the GOtv NextGen Search, who will make the pro debuts. Michael “Show” Rolland and Nwoye “Lion” Prince face each other in a national lightweight challenge contest, while Saidi “Attacker” Lawal will take on fellow graduate Samuel “Godspower’ Elegbede in a national super middleweight challenge duel. Another super middleweight challenge contest will see Matthew “Wizeman” Obinna take on Yusuf “Koste” Moshood.
The event, which kicks off at 5pm, is sponsored by GOtv, and supported by MultiChoice, SuperSport, Newsbreak.ng, KSquare Security, Paragonis Multimedia Limited, Complete Sports, Bond FM and Brila FM. It will be broadcast live by SuperSport in 47 African countries.
Hot boxing property, Olaide “Fijaborn” Fijabi is back in training for the national light welterweight title at the next GOtv Boxing Night slated for December. Fijabi, winner of the N1 million cash prize and the Mojisola Ogunsanya Trophy for the best boxer at the third edition of GOtv Boxing Night, disclosed his resumption to training in Lagos during the week.
“I am back in training. The GOtv Boxing Night is almost here. I will be gunning of a national title and I am determined to win. Nothing will stop me,” said Fijabi, who did not lose in 35 amateur and two professional fights.
His confidence is based on his impeccable ability, which saw him win the national amateur title three times and multiple gold medals at the National Sports Festival. “No boxer in my cadre has defeated me. It will not happen now. My target is to be world champion and by the grace of God, it will happen. Very soon. The support GOtv and Flykite are giving to boxing makes me confident that this is possible. As a matter of fact, without GOtv, I would not have turned professional.
Those who turned professional way back are still living from hand to mouth, but now, things have improved,” he said.
Stakeholders and fans of boxing in the country have lauded GOtv, headline sponsors of GOtv Boxing Night, for the successful organisation of the fourth edition of the six-bout professional boxing event and contributions to the revival of the sport.
The event, which held on Sunday at the Indoor Sports Hall of the National Stadium, Lagos, left stakeholders and the audience in raptures.
Secretary-General of the Nigerian Boxing Board of Control (NBB of C) Mr. Remi Aboderin described GOtv Boxing Night as the lifeline that has saved the sport from going into extinction.
“Everybody associated with boxing must be grateful to GOtv for rescuing the sport from the doldrums. Without funding and high quality organisation by GOtv and Flykite Productions, the promoters, I shudder to think what could have happened to boxing,” he said.
Dr. Rafiu Ladipo, President-General of the Nigerian Supporters Club and member of the NBB of C, shares similar sentiments. ” GOtv has offered boxers the opportunity of fighting more regularly, something that was not happening before, and the sport is back on a sound footing. If we keep this up, the sport will fully recover in no time,” he said.
Fans at the event were effusive in their commendations for the sponsors, with many of them hoping that the event grows and for the country to produce a world champion soon.
Ottoh “Joe Boy” Joseph was the revelation of the fourth edition of the GOtv Boxing Night, as he was named the best boxer of the event. He defeated Nurudeen “Prince” Fatai in a National Lightweight challenge contest to win the Mojisola Ogunsanya Memorial Trophy and the cash prize of N1m.
Another winner on the night was Waidi “Skoro” Usman, the West African Featherweight champion, who knocked out Taofik “Taozon” Bisuga in the fourth round of their eight-round contest. Olaide “Fijaborn” Fijabi, first winner of the Mojisola Ogunsanya Memorial Trophy and the N1m cash prize, also came out triumphant when he defeated Saheed “Happy Boy” Olayiwola by a fifth round knockout of Light Welterweight challenge contest. Isiaka “Easy Lion” Yusuf was knocked out by Stanley “Edo Boy” Eribo in the third round of their National Featherweight challenge bout.
The night’s major bout saw Nigeria’s Isaac Ekpo, a former Commonwealth Super Middleweight champion, accounting for Burkina Faso’s Jules Kabore, who was knocked out in the fifth round of the scheduled 10-round bout. The first fight of the night featured Jamiu “Naval Man” Olabode against Pelumi “Haggler” Sodubi, who was knocked in the second round.
The tournament is supported by other corporate bodies like MultiChocie, SuperSport, KSquare Security, Custodian Assurance Limited, Complete Sports, Brilla FM, Bond FM and Newsbreak.ng.
Today, at the Indoor Sports Hall of the National Stadium in Lagos, another feast of boxing will be laid before fans. The occasion is the fourth edition of the GOtv Boxing Night, a six-fight professional boxing event that has successfully rebooted public interest in the sport as well as banished the long wait that boxers had to endure between fights.
Just as it was at the last edition of the event, the best boxer of the evening will go home with a N1million and a laurel, the Mojisola Ogunsanya Memorial Trophy, for his outstanding performance.
The first winner of the prize, Olaide “Fijaborn” Fijabi, has a chance to further cement his reputation as a genuine article when he takes on Saheed “Happy Boy” Olayiwola in an eight-round National Light Welterweight challenge bout.
Fijabi, whose rapid-fire punching has made him a darling of boxing fans around the country, has already vowed to win the prize again. Will he? It is not unsafe to bet against him repeating the feat.
But he may have to stand out a lot more, given the calibre of boxers featuring at the tourney.
The duo of Nigeria’s Isaac “Grenade” Ekpo, a former Commonwealth Super Middleweight champion, and Burkina Faso’s Jules Kabore have the profile to thwart Fijabi’s bid for another big pay day when they clash in an international challenge bout, the headline fight at the event.
Ekpo, an ex-Olympian, is rated eighth in world. His Burkinabe opponent has a record that suggests he is no soft touch.
Of his seven fights, he won four by knockout, two by unanimous decision and one by points, a record Ekpo considers as having no relevance to today’s duel. “I will make him see hell before knocking him out in the fourth round,” boasted the Nigerian.
In another big fight, Nurudeen “Prince” Fatai, National Lightweight champion, will take on Ottoh “Joe Boy” Joseph in a challenge contest. Also on the card is Waidi “Skoro” Usman, West African Featherweight champion, who is up against Taofik “Taozon” Bisuga.
Skoro, a big draw among boxing fans, has vowed to send the more experienced Bisuga into retirement.
The fight line-up is completed by the Light Welterweight challenge duel between Stanley “Edo Boy” Eribo and Isiaka “Easy Lion” Yusuf and the six-round Welterweight challenge bout featuring Jamiu “Naval Man” Ajibola and Pelumi “Haggler” Sodubi.
Boxing fans at the venue have a chance to win 50 GOtv decoders, provided by the sponsors, through lucky dips to be held between fights. The first 500 fans to arrive the venue are guaranteed to go home with gifts like high quality T-shirts, ball pens, bags, diaries and water bottles.
The organisers have already assured fans of adequate protection from intimidation and harassment in around the venue of the event. Jenkins Alumona, Managing Director of Flykite, promoters of the event, disclosed that KSquare Security, a top class firm in partnership with GOtv Boxing Night, will provide security around the venue.
Sponsored by pay-TV company, GOtv, the tournament which started last November, also held in March and July. GOtv Boxing Night is supported by other corporate bodies like MultiChocie, SuperSport, KSquare Security, Custodian Assurance Limited, Complete Sports, Brilla FM, Bond FM and Newsbreak.ng. The event will be broadcast live on SuperSport.
Ahead of the GOtv Boxing Night holding on Sunday at the Indoor Sports Hall of the National Stadium, Lagos, opponents have been swapping boasts of decimating each other. Nigeria’s Isaac “Grenade” Ekpo, a former Commonwealth Super Middleweight champion, has vowed to stop his opponent Jules “Tyson” Kabore of Burkina Faso in the fourth of their 10-round contest when they meet in the event’s headline bout. “Kabore is taller than I am, but that will have no bearing on the fight. I will be celebrating my birthday on Sunday and I have to give myself a birthday present. Stopping Kabore in the fourth round is the present that I want and deserve. He is not going beyond that and he knows,” raved Ekpo.
Kabore is also talking up his own chances against an accomplished opponent.
Responding to Ekpo’s claim that he cannot be defeated in Nigeria, Kabore said: “I won four of my seven fights via TKO. I am undefeated since turning pro. I am taller and better than Ekpo. Tell him that. He will fall. That is not a subject for debate.”
Nurudeen “Prince” Fatai, the National Lightweight champion billed to fight Joe “Otto Boy” Joseph in a challenge contest, has dismissed his opponent’s chances of defeating him as non-existent. “I have been a champion for ten years. It takes something to be a champion, which Ottoh does not have. Many have tried and failed. Ottoh will fail,” he said waspishly. Ottoh’s response was similarly threat-filled. “Tell him that he has spent his time. This is my time. I will beat him and tell him that his time has gone. No story,” he bragged.
Olaide “Fijaborn” Fijabi, who won the one million cash prize for the best boxer at the last edition of the GOtv Boxing Night, is convinced that he will repeat the trick when he takes on Saheed “Happy Boy” Olayiwola in a National Light Welterweight challenge duel. Fijabi said his opponent will transmute into a sad boy from “Happy Boy”.
“He calls himself Happy Boy, but when I finish with him, he will be the saddest boy in the whole of Nigeria. Just wait and see,” he boasted. Happy Boy, however, is convinced that he will be the happier guy at the end of the fight.
“Fijabi is a small boy. I will teach him boxing and he will go home crying like a baby,” he retorted.
GOtv Boxing Night, an initiative to revive boxing in Nigeria, will feature six professional fights. The others aresix-round duels which will see Jamiu “Naval Man” Olabode, take on Pelumi “Haggler” Sodubi in a Welterweight challenge, while Stanley “Edo Boy” Eribo will duel with Isiaka “Easy Lion” Yusuf. Waidi “Skoro” Usman will take on Taofik “Taozon” Bisuga in a Featherweight challenge contest.
The event, which starts at 4pm, will be broadcast live on SuperSport.
Sponsored by pay-TV company, GOtv, the tournament which started last November, also held in March and July. GOtv Boxing Night is supported by other corporate bodies like MultiChocie, SuperSport, KSquare Security, Custodian Assurance Limited, Complete Sports, Brilla FM, Bond FM and Newsbreak.ng.
Fans coming to the fourth edition of the GOtv Boxing Night on 25 October are in line to go home with 50 GOtv decoders provided by the headline sponsors of the event.
Winners of the decoders will be determined through lucky dips to be held in between fights at the Indoor Sports Hall of the National Stadium, Lagos, venue of the event.
In addition, the first 100 fans to arrive the venue will win gifts like T-shirts, face caps, bags, diaries and ball pens. According to the organisers, the gifts are a way of rewarding boxing fans for their devotion to the sport and their contributions to efforts at reviving it through the event.
GOtv Boxing Night is a six fight professional event that seeks to give the cream of the sport a regular outlet for their talents.
The biggest fight at the fourth edition will be between Nigeria’s Isaac Ekpo, a former Commonwealth champion, and Jules Kabore of Burkina Faso in a 10-round international super middleweight challenge duel. Olaide “Fijaborn ” Fijabi will take on Saheed “Happy Boy” Olayiwola in a light welterweight challenge duel.
The line-up also has Nurudeen “Prince” Fatai, national lightweight champion, taking on Otto “Joe Boy” Joseph in an eight-round challenge bout, while Stanley “Edo Boy” Eribo will face Isiaka “Easy Lion” Yusuf in a lightwelterweight challenge.
Other fights on the card will see Waidi “Skoro” Usman, West African featherweight champion, fighting Taofik “Taozon” Bisuga, while Jamiu “Naval Man” Olabode will fight Pelumi “Haggler” Sodubi in welterweight challenge.
The best boxer on the night will go home with N1million and the Mojisola Ogunsanya Memorial Trophy.
Olaide “Fijaborn” Fijabi, the star Light Welterweight boxer, won the biggest ever pay-out in the history of Nigerian boxing, as he was voted best boxer at the GOtv Boxing Night on Sunday.
Fijabi also went home with the Mojisola Ogunsanya Memorial Trophy and plenty of adulation, following his defeat of Kazeem “Iberu” Ariyo, by unanimous decision, in an eight-round contest.
From the first round, Fijabi, the clear crowd favourite, punished his opponent with deft combinations that left the huge crowd screaming his name.
Ariyo, a decent boxer in his own right, however, found Fijabi too hot to handle.
In another big fight on the night, Sule “Tyson” Olagbade, National Light Middleweight champion, retained his belt, following his defeat of challenger, Rasheed “Afonja Warrior” Abolaji in their closely-contested 12-round bout.
All the judges called the fight in Olagbade’s favour. Both boxers fought with gusto, drawing unrestrained applause from the crowd.
In the Lightweight category, the challenge bout between Prince Nurudeen Fatai and Chibuzor “T-Boy” Obi ended in the latter’s favour by unanimous decision.
Sunday “Golden Child” Ajuwa also defeated Femi “Easywhite” Ajayi in an eight-round Cruiserweight challenge.
In the Heavyweight division, Onoriode “Onos” Ehwarieme knocked out Adewale “Masevex” Masebinu in the second of their six-round challenge bout.
The international female bout between Nigerian boxer, Helen “Iron Lady” Johnson and Ghana’s Gifty “Tiger” Ankrah was won by unanimous decision by the Nigerian.
Sponsored by GOtv, the event is supported by MultiChoice, SuperSport, KSquare Security, Newsbreak.ng, Complete Sports, Brilla FM and Paragonis Multimedia Limited.
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