Two World Boxing Federation (WBF) title bouts will headline GOtv Boxing Night 22, the organisers have announced. The event, scheduled to hold 1 January in Lagos, will take place behind closed doors in line with the dictates of COVID-19 protocols and will feature a total of seven bouts.
The welterweight category will see Nigeria’s Rilwan “Baby Face Babatunde, West African Boxing Union (WABU) champion fighting Tanzania’s Mkalekwa Salehe Omari for the WBF (International) title. The lightweight division will see the exciting Rilwan “Real One” Oladosu, WABU lightweight champion, taking on Ghana’s Emmanuel Quartey for the WBF (International) lightweight title.
The event will be beamed live to boxing fans on GOtv Select 2 (channel 34) and DStv channel 209.
GOtv Boxing Night 22 will be the second edition of the event held behind closed doors. The last edition, which held on 27 November, was the first.
Speaking on the coming event, Jenkins Alumona, CEO of Flykite Productions, organisers of GOtv Boxing Night, said the two WBF title fights provide an indication of the resurgence of Nigerian boxing.
“The WBF is major boxing global boxing authority and we are delighted that it has approved these bouts. On account of WBF’s profile in boxing circuits, it’s safe to say that the boxing body has continued to be impressed by GOtv Boxing Night sponsors’ intervention in Nigerian boxing. In 2019, we staged the WBF (Intercontinental) heavyweight title bout and we’re about staging two WBF titles in one night. The evidence of growth is undisputable. We thank the WBF for its support,” said Alumona.
The Flykite boss also urged fans to tune in on the event day, saying the decision to hold the event behind closed doors is in the interest of public health. He noted that many sporting events abroad are still being held behind closed doors in accordance with the advice of health authority.
