JINAN, CHINA- The Maida Energy Sports Center hosted another two-day fight card, the second for this month, with a total of seventeen bouts and seventeen boxers making their professional debut.This underscores the continuing growth of professional boxing in China.
The first day featured eight pairs of fighters from the super bantamweight to the light heavyweight divisions. Two bouts stood out ? the competitive lightweight brawl between Qing Ji Ru Mu vs Wang Zixiang which was punctuated by heavy exchanges and Qing prevailed by split verdict. The evening was capped by the free swinging light heavyweight battle between Wuzhati Nuerlang and Wang Yihao. Both threw caution to the winds and Wang was eventually decked in the third. He got up and finished the round but his corner signaled that they would not enter the fourth.
The second day of competitions had nine pairs of boxers from super flyweight to super middleweight. The best fight was between Zeng Yujie and Wang Pei. It was spirited and close with Zeng pulling off a majority decision win.
SECA and Top Rank launched the League of Fists boxing tournament two years ago and the winners in season one were crowned WBO Greater China champions. The first batch of season two finals will be held in June. There are more than 300 Chinese boxers who have fought in shows promoted by SECA. For this year, around a hundred new boxers have made their debut. There are also other promotional outfits in China and Hong Kong who have continued to showcase their stable of fighters.
China has made inroads at the top level of professional boxing. Last year, Zou Shiming acquired the WBO flyweight title while early this year on the women?s side, Zong Ju Cai won the IBF female minimumweight title.
Prizefighting has nowhere to go but up in the Chinese mainland. The sport may still lag in popularity to the other well-established sporting disciplines but boxing pundits ? who have observed pro boxing in China since the start of big fight cards in Macao- believe that in the next five to ten years, China will be a real force to reckon with in the world of professional boxing.
Photo ? super welterweight action in day two of fights in Jinan.
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