ASHLEY Dlamini will have to resign himself to the box-and-dine circuit after failing to win a proper title on Monday night.
The popular "King of Box- and-Dine", who has fought 13 times in such tournaments at Emperors Palace, failed to take the lesser-recognised Gauteng junior- lightweight provincial belt from defending champion Koos "The Great Last Warrior" Sibiya after a draw.
Dlamini, from Bushbuck Ridge in Mpumalanga, gave his best and even dropped Sibiya for the count in round seven.
But the diminutive boxer who fights out of Colin Nathan's gym in Johannesburg could not take advantage of the flash knockdown.
The 29-year-old had never been asked to fight over eight rounds before, and faded in the last three rounds.
His poor head movement and lack of mobility meant he was always susceptible to getting tagged on the way in.
Sibiya, who fought well, moving from side to side, finished smartly, throwing combos to the head and body.
In the end, their clean-fought 10-rounder was declared a draw and Sibiya retained his title by virtue of being the champion.
Sibiya, whose corner was manned by Bernie Pailman, Cliff Martins and Peter Faver, recorded the first defence of the provincial title he won in April.
The draw was Sibiya's fourth against 15 wins and eight defeats, while Dlamini has 14 wins, two losses and two draws.
Meanwhile, Dwayne "Thunderbolt" Combrink avenged his only loss to Sylvester "Zak Attack" Zaki and won the Gauteng middleweight title in the process. Combrink, who was outpointed by Zaki over six rounds in April, stopped Zaki in the sixth round.
The 22-year-old fighter trained by Manny Fernandes bettered his knockout ratio to five in six wins against one loss. The Harold Volbrecht-trained Zaki, 23, suffered his fourth short-route defeat.
The rematch between these youngsters from Johannesburg's Southern Suburbs topped the five-bout card of African Ring.
Other results: Featherweight (4 rounds): Thembani Hobyane beat Kathiso Hlahane on points; junior- welterweight: Adam de Moor beat Justice Ndlovu TKO1; junior-middleweight (4 rounds): Tyrone Koen beat Kutlwano Gare on points.
Sibiya defeat exposes king of Box-and-dine
ASHLEY Dlamini will have to resign himself to the box-and-dine circuit after failing to win a proper title on Monday night.
The popular "King of Box- and-Dine", who has fought 13 times in such tournaments at Emperors Palace, failed to take the lesser-recognised Gauteng junior- lightweight provincial belt from defending champion Koos "The Great Last Warrior" Sibiya after a draw.
Dlamini, from Bushbuck Ridge in Mpumalanga, gave his best and even dropped Sibiya for the count in round seven.
But the diminutive boxer who fights out of Colin Nathan's gym in Johannesburg could not take advantage of the flash knockdown.
The 29-year-old had never been asked to fight over eight rounds before, and faded in the last three rounds.
His poor head movement and lack of mobility meant he was always susceptible to getting tagged on the way in.
Sibiya, who fought well, moving from side to side, finished smartly, throwing combos to the head and body.
In the end, their clean-fought 10-rounder was declared a draw and Sibiya retained his title by virtue of being the champion.
Sibiya, whose corner was manned by Bernie Pailman, Cliff Martins and Peter Faver, recorded the first defence of the provincial title he won in April.
The draw was Sibiya's fourth against 15 wins and eight defeats, while Dlamini has 14 wins, two losses and two draws.
Meanwhile, Dwayne "Thunderbolt" Combrink avenged his only loss to Sylvester "Zak Attack" Zaki and won the Gauteng middleweight title in the process. Combrink, who was outpointed by Zaki over six rounds in April, stopped Zaki in the sixth round.
The 22-year-old fighter trained by Manny Fernandes bettered his knockout ratio to five in six wins against one loss. The Harold Volbrecht-trained Zaki, 23, suffered his fourth short-route defeat.
The rematch between these youngsters from Johannesburg's Southern Suburbs topped the five-bout card of African Ring.
Other results: Featherweight (4 rounds): Thembani Hobyane beat Kathiso Hlahane on points; junior- welterweight: Adam de Moor beat Justice Ndlovu TKO1; junior-middleweight (4 rounds): Tyrone Koen beat Kutlwano Gare on points.
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