Comeback kid Mboyiya’s star set to continue rising

In a knockdown-filled bout, Mboyiya looked nothing like the defending champion of a title he had won in style by upsetting veteran Sydney Maluleka as an unknown practitioner.

“Mboyiya is still raw for Maluleka but I suppose a loss will not hurt him especially as he is still young,” he said as he called Pailman to offer him Mboyiya.

The fight was quite a jump in competition for the then 19-year-old but this scribe had seen Mboyiya in action albeit against relative average opposition and was convinced that his awkward style would be a nightmare for any featherweight boxer in the land.

The fight followed the script with Mboyiya getting off to a good start as he totally flummoxed Maluleka who grew frustrated as the rounds progressed.

Although he faded badly in the late rounds, which was understandable as he had never gone past 10 rounds before, Mboyiya’s early lead was enough to dethrone Maluleka in one of the boxing upsets in the region.

His first defence against a resilient Lucky Khwaza proved harder than expected as a combination of factors including a dispute between his handlers Dingaan Somtsorha and Mnguni began to surface.

Mnguni had insisted that the youngster should prepare for his fights at his Eyethu gymnasium in Mdantsane while Somtsorha wanted him to train together with his other boxers in Duncan Village.

The cracks began to show when Mboyiya dropped a points decision to Macbute Sinyabi in the Premier Boxing League (PBL) with Somtsorha in his corner instead of Mnguni’s trainers.

But it was how he lost to Komanisi via a six-round knockout that rang alarm bells for him as a rising star.

To make matters worse Mnguni did a Don King in the ring when he was seen congratulating Komanisi even though his promotional contract with Mboyiya was still valid.

This was exacerbated by Komanisi’s trainer Nick Durandt on revealing that his charge had signed a promotional pact with Mnguni.

Mboyiya lost interest in boxing and was seen roaming the streets with his friends, way out of shape until he met Kholisile “KCI” Cengani.

“I saw him with his friends going to the beach in February 2014 totally out of shape and I called him aside,” Cengani recalls.

“I asked where he was training and he said nowhere. I told him that he was wasting his talent. I asked him to report to my gym and since then he has never looked back.”

Mboyiya was to hold veteran Oscar Chauke to a draw in Port Elizabeth in his first fight under Cengani and trainer in former SA flyweight champion Xola Mayana’s tutelage.

Then victories followed against the late Lwando Molwana and a come-from-behind sixth round knockout over big banger Wonga Mhlana.

The win over Mhlana convinced Xaba Promotions and Events (XPE) to sign the left hander.

Since then the 23-year-old has not looked back as he grinds out victories culminating in his seventh round stoppage against Abraham Osei Bonsu to pick up the interim WBO Africa junior lightweight crown just a fortnight ago.

“He is so committed to training that you would be hard pressed to draw comparisons with his past,” Cengani says.

Having captured the regional title is the beginning of bigger things for Mboyiya whose two losses to Sinyabi and Komanisi remain the only blemishes in his 15-bouts record.

“Mboyiya was fortunate that he went through the slump early in his career and this has helped him to be rededicated to his career. He is only 23 years old but the past experiences have matured him to know what he wants.”

With a reputable promotional company XPE behind him expect Mboyiya to keep scaling the boxing heights next year.