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 Ndou Confident of Victory against Mitchell Jan 30, 2004 By Anthony Cocks
Site Editor Note: On Wednesday, January 28th, 2004, Doghouse Boxing's own Anthony Cocks, caught up with top contender Lovemore Ndou to conduct the following exclusive piece: After a week of intense behind-the-scenes wrangling, IBF #9 Lovemore "The Black Panther" Ndou has been officially announced as Sharmba Mitchell's opponent for February 7th at Bally's in Atlantic City replacing the injured Kostya Tszyu. The fight will be sanctioned by the IBF for an interim version of the junior welterweight title. A brief timeline of the events that led to this fight being made are as follows… Tszyu pulls out of the Mitchell fight citing a shoulder injury… Ndou is named as the replacement fighter… James Toney, who was scheduled to face Jameel McCline in the co-headline bout, withdraws with an Achilles injury… The card is then moved from the Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas to Bally's in Atlantic City… Omar Weis is now named as Mitchell's opponent… It comes to light that Weis is nowhere near fighting fit and well over the junior welterweight limit… Ndou receives official confirmation that he will be fighting Sharmba Mitchell on February 7th for the interim IBF Junior Welterweight Title... What a difference a day makes! While the convoluted nature of the negotiation process would put most boxers off their game, the always upbeat Ndou has managed to remain fully focused on the task at hand. “I never stopped training. I kept training like the fight was still happening. I knew, I just had a feeling this was going to happen because I know around the Christmas period while I’m always training, other contenders in my division were probably not training so I knew they wouldn’t be available,” explained Ndou. The supremely confident Ndou expects a tough fight against the former WBA Super Lightweight Champion, but also feels that Mitchell’s team may have underestimated him. “They thought it was going to be an easy night for Sharmba Mitchell, but I guarantee it’s not going to be an easy night for him. I was already in training for another fight, but when I heard I was going to fight Sharmba, I pulled out of the fight. The thing is I’ve been training all through Christmas and I’m in the best shape of my life, so Sharmba can expect a tough fight from me,” said Ndou. When pressed about how he plans to fight Mitchell, the hard-hitting IBF Pan Pacific Champion understandably played his cards close to his chest. “Look, I'm not going to give away anything right now, but I have been studying some of his tapes. He's a very experienced fighter, a southpaw, very slick, so you know I'm expecting a tough fight but at the same time, I know exactly what to do to beat him,” said Ndou. Much of the credit for making this fight must go to Ndou's manager Stuart Duncan and his American promoter Dan Goossen, who have worked studiously behind the scenes to make this bout a reality. "I just want to thank all the people who helped make this possible. First of all Dan Goossen from Goossen-Tutor Promotions, I know that he’s worked hard to put this fight together, and my manager Stuart Duncan who has been on the phone day and night working really hard to get this fight going," said an appreciative Ndou. "I also want to thank my sponsors for all their support and at the same time I want to thank my family and friends who have always been with me through all my ups and downs, even when this fight was dead. I want to thank everyone who has supported me and lifted my spirits and again I want to thank all my fans for wishing me all the best," said Ndou. The fight will be broadcast in Australia on one week delay on Fox Sports 1 & Optus Sports 1 at 10.30pm AEDT on Saturday 14th February 2004. This is a winnable fight for Ndou, who has been calling out Kostya Tszyu ever since moving up from the lightweight division. A victory against the talented Washington native will see Ndou leapfrog into the upper echelon of the division and solidify his claims to a shot at the legitimate junior welterweight crown. With all the turmoil surrounding this fight, Sharmba Mitchell would be well advised to bring his A-game with him to the ring on February 7th because the Panther is on the prowl. Questions or comments email Anthony at: anthonyc1974@hotmail.com Discuss This Topic at the Message Boards.
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