Boxing News Boxing News
With less than two weeks notice, Samson “The Hammer” Onyango travelled to Poland and delivered an admirable performance against Roman “The Ukranian Tyson” Shkarupa in a bid for the vacant WBF Intercontinental super middleweight title on Thursday August 30.
Live on television throughout Poland, Onyango lost a fair unanimous decision, but was always in the fight and dangerous with his considerable punching power.
Unfortunately for the Kenyan, who saw his record drop to 12-2 (9), he couldn’t maximize the potential of his reach advantage, and never got his jab working properly.
Shkarupa, now 15-1-1 (5), was the more aggressive of the two, and was able to take the fight to Onyango at close quarters. This tactic earned him most of the rounds, although not by much. And Onyango several times got through with his weapon of choice, the hard right hand, to get his opponents respect.
But after 12 rounds there was no question who deserved the victory, Shkarupa getting the verdict by scores of 119-110, 119-109, 119-109. A score that, while not out of line, didn’t tell the true story of the fight, claims manager Henrik Risum:
“It is probably accurate that Shkarupa won ten rounds, but many of the rounds were very close. So while it might look like a one-sided fight on paper, it really wasn’t, and I am proud of Sam’s performance. With so short notice, practically no sparring, and this being his first twelve-rounder, I think he did very well, and certainly all he could under the circumstances. He is a true professional! Shkarupa won fair and square, and we congratulate him and his team, and thank them and the WBF for the opportunity.”
On the same show, Risum Boxing affiliated Stanley Katibi lost a hard-fought eight-round unanimous decision to local hero Slawomir Ziemlewicz at light middleweight. Like Onyango, Katibi did well after taking the fight on short notice. His record is now 10-4-1 (4), while Ziemlewicz goes to 17-3-2 (3).
