Mdantsane veteran Ali “Rush Hour” Funeka has decided to forge ahead with boxing career despite calls for him to retire.
Breaking his silence after his heartbreaking six-round stoppage defeat by Australian Jeff Horn in New Zealand this past December, Funeka says he will continue with his boxing before retiring at the end of the year.
The 38-year-old capitulated at his biggest fight to date when he succumbed to the former New Zealand school teacher despite promising to knock him out.
Funeka admitted that he was surprised by Horn’s unconventional boxing style which threw him off his stride.
“He has the most awkward style I have ever seen and wait until you are in the ring with him to see just how unconventional his style is,” said Funeka.
After dropping Horn with a body shot in the second round of their clash which served as an eliminator for the right to challenge Filipino great Manny Pacquiao, Funeka found himself getting tagged by Horn’s right hand which was supplemented by budging in with his head.
Funeka said Horn’s lunge with his head resulted in him suffering a nasty cut which bothered him throughout the fight.
“When he head-butted me in the third all my fighting spirit evaporated. My head was spinning and I could not execute the fight strategy.”
Having faced world-class boxers – including Nate Campbell, Joan Guzman and a handful of others – Funeka admitted that Horn had the most unconventional style of them all.
“He meshes that style of his with a good punch which he throws from an awkward angle. When he caught me with it in the fifth round I could not see it coming.”
The Mdantsane veteran said he could have beaten the count and continued to fight but he made a grave mistake of getting up soon after the knockdown.
This despite his history of his unsteady legs which had been responsible for his stoppage defeats such as the one he suffered against unheralded Tsiko Mulovhedzi in July 2015.
“I should have taken the count on my knee but I made the mistake of getting too quick from the knockdown when my legs were still unsteady.”
With his corner manned by Dudu Bungu who had trained him before, Funeka refused to blame the defeat on the inexperience of his technical team.
“When you are at this level, you really cannot depend too much on your technical team. Yes planned together and I believe we had a perfect fight strategy for the fight but then things did not work out.”
Funeka admitted that he was so gutted after the defeat that he spent weeks trying to make up his mind about what to do next.
By losing to Horn he has missed out on a dream match against Pacquiao, which would have given him a nice retirement package.
“Things happen for a reason and sometimes we do not understand how they did until it is late. When I was denied chances to be a world champion I did not know what God had in store for me and maybe He has other plans.”