Accra, August 3, GNA - Isaac Nettey, 27, became the new International Boxing Federation (IBF) Intercontinental Super Bantamweight champion after a majority decision win over Galley Cudjoe, 29, on Saturday at the Lebanon Club House, Accra. The bout, the topmost attraction of the Boxing Bonanza put together by Sikaprix Promotion and the Commonwealth Sports Awards and sponsored by gateway Broadcast Services (GBS), lived up to its pre-bout billing as both boxers thrilled patrons with some great boxing artistry.
Nettey (18-4, 6 KOs), a product of the Bukom Gym, and a last-gasp replacement for Nigerian Felix Friday, clearly dominated the contest, and his performance was deservingly rewarded with the highest points on the score cards of all three South African judges. The weary-looking Nettey who last fought in December 2007, had the better of the exchanges till the eighth round where a dip in stamina allowed Cudjoe to also bounce back. During each of those eight rounds, "Kalusha" as the Chorkor-born Nettey is nicknamed made use of his right hand, landing a lot of right punches, along with hard right hooks to the body and head of Cudjoe, the Black Panthers Gym product. By the second round, Cudjoe's right eye swelled and it became the main target of Nettey.
The problem for Cudjoe was that he faced a very strong boxer whose combination of left and right punches was his undoing. In the eighth round, Nettey was docked a point by South African referee Deon Dworte for consistent hitting below, but Cudjoe's occasional feign at punches below his headline attracted no further concerns from Dworte. Nettey maintained his momentum in the ninth round, looking like he might stop Cudjoe this time but a timely left hook from the latter saw him back into contention before a flurry of landing punches around Nettey's head tilted the round in his favour. "Kalusha" came out strongly in the twelfth round after a low in the tenth and eleventh to finish in grand style while Cudjoe killed up time by consistent clinching.
Judges Andrew Smale, Isaac Tshabalala and Alfred Boqwana scored the bout 113-114, 113-115 and 112-115 all in favour Nettey, who was decorated with the IBF title by promoter Samir Captan while Cudjoe surprisingly wailed at the decision. The much-awaited Commonwealth Super lightweight final eliminator between Isaac Quartey of Attoh Quarshie and Lartei Lartey of Bukom lasted only the first round. Lartey sustained a cut in an accidental head-butt, which was medically unwise to continue, forcing the bout to be declared a technical draw. Lartey won the previous fight between them in November 2006 by a majority decision.
In the Africa Boxing Union (ABU) championship, Alfred "Torano" Mensah defeated Dragon Kidega of Uganda via TKO in the sixth round while Mohamed Akrong also beat Karama Nyilawaila of Tanzania courtesy a ninth round TKO to wrap up the vacant Super Lightweight and Middleweight title respectively. In other bouts, John Napari of Panix Gym stopped Sugar Ray Acquaye in the third round of their national heavyweight contest just as Samuel Amoako of Bukom Gym handed a sixth round TKO to Peter Musah of Sagacious Club to wrap up the National Lightweight title. In a welterweight contest, Obodai Sai defeated Kofi Manu via a split point decision.
