Did bookies hand Mandonga easy victory in bout with Wanyonyi?

Karim "Mtu Kazi" Mandonga (Right) from Tanzania punishes Daniel Wanyonyi in their Non-Title Super Middleweight 10 Rounds bout at KICC in Nairobi on January 14, 2023. Mandonga won the fight by a TKO after Wanyonyi refused to answer the bell for the 6th Round. [Stafford Ondego, Standard]

It was meant to be a tight fight. A closely contested bout. It wasn't. This was a 10-round fight. It ended in the fifth.

When the showboating Tanzania boxer Karim 'Mtu Kazi' Mandonga raised his hands in victory over the seasoned Kenyan pugilist Daniel Wanyonyi at the KICC Tsavo ballroom, yesterday morning.

Those who had thronged the boxing hall watched in awe, with hands on their heads, as a spirited Mandonga punished Wanyonyi with flurry of punches as he commanded the Super middleweight non-title fight like a colossus. Mandonga literally took the fight to the hapless Wanyonyi, descending on him with his now famous Sugunyo jabs.

Wanyonyi had nowhere to hide as Mandonga toyed with him, turning him into a punching bag in the opening five rounds.

The confident Tanzanian controlled the tempo of the encounter as a confused Wanyonyi, who was feeling the heat, shifted from one corner of the ring to the other in search of reprieve. The motor-mouth Tanzanian was finally declared winner of the one-sided bout on Technical Knock-out in the fifth round after Wanyonyi's corner refused to answer the bell for the sixth.

The victory now takes Mandonga's tally to eight bouts with 4 wins (4KOs), 3 losses (all KOs) and a draw.

"Was that really the Wanyonyi I know?" John Otieno, a boda boda rider from Umoja Innercore, who had followed the fight online, wondered.

Fans cheer as Karim Mandonga from Tanzania fight Daniel Wanyonyi in their Non-Title Super Middleweight 10 Rounds bout at KICC in Nairobi on January 14, 2023. Mandonga won the fight by a TKO after Wanyonyi refused to answer the bell for the 6th Round. [Stafford Ondego, Standard]

James Okido from Kibera alleges that local bookies could have influenced the outcome of the game to increase Mandonga's popularity.

"He (Mandonga) is good for corporate marketing, publicity and branding, hence the need to popularise him to increase his rating," Okido claimed.

"I'm sure Mandonga will be swimming in money when he returns to Kenya for another sort of challenge," he added.

Other Kenyans like Alamin Somo from Mombasa, who were irked with the bout's outcome have now agreed to put their lives on the line on behalf of Wanyonyi saying Kenya deserved respect from Tanzania.

"Mandonga si mtu kazi, Mandonga ni mtu ganzi (Mandonga is not a piece of work, he is a fake boxer)," Somo ranted in a trending video.

"On behalf of all Kenyans, I'm challenging him for a fight. I'm inviting him to Mombasa to come and fight me. I pledge to teach him a lesson. I promise to floor him with my Tyson-like jabs," Somo said.

At the same time, former Africa Boxing Union champion Rayton 'Boom Boom' Okwiri narrowly defeated his Tanzanian opponent Ally Ndaro on points in their 8-round middleweight bout at the same venue.

Despite Okwiri's victory, Ndaro gave good account of himself in the ring. Both sides had a balance of power as they slugged it off in the fully packed hall.

The victory took Okwiri's records to 10 fights including eight wins (6KO's), a draw and a loss.

"We are glad with the return of boxing to Kenya. We are happy that Kenyans responded positively after such a long time," Betnare representative Lydia Njeri, whose organisation supported the bouts, told Standard Sports.