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Peter knocks out Maskaev, confirmed WBC heavyweight
champion
By Olukayode Thomas, Adeyinka Adedipe, Gowon Akpodonor
and Eno-Abasi Sunday
UNTIL last Saturday, he was the World Boxing Council's
(WBC's) interim champion. But yesterday morning,
Nigeria's Samuel Okon Peter knocked out Russian's Oleg
Maskaev to become the undisputed boxing heavyweight
champion of the world.
The WBC had crowned Peter in interim capacity after
Maskaev, the former champion, failed to defend the
title.
But yesterday in Cancun, Mexico, Peter, a policeman,
stopped the Russian in the |
sixth of the 12-round fight that was watched live in
Nigeria, courtesy of the Akwa Ibom State Government.
Governor Godswill Akpabio of Akwa Ibom State immediately
congratulated President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, the Police
and all Nigerians on Peter's victory.
Akpabio said Peter has again demonstrated the indomitable
spirit of a Nigerian.
Signs of Peter's imminent victory started emerging in the
fourth round when he moved ahead of Maskaev by about three
points.
Although the former champion was cautious from the
beginning, he, however, ran into a barrage of punches from
Peter, who is fondly called the "Nigerian Nightmare", two
rounds later and that spelt the end of the road for him.
"He has made Africa proud. He has made Nigeria proud. No
wonder they call him "the Nigerian Nightmare." I
congratulate President Yar'Adua, the Nigerian Police -
Peter's constituency - and the entire nation on this
exciting victory. We in Akwa Ibom are very proud of this
achievement and we have no regret for supporting our son
to this unprecedented feat," Akpabio said.
Peter, in his post-fight interview, also televised live,
had praised Akpabio for setting up and funding his
training team.
He also thanked God for giving him the victory.
Akpabio said later that Peter, by becoming the first
African to win the WBC heavyweight crown, has not only
made Akwa Ibom proud, but has shown that with proper
engagement, Nigerian youths can always lift the nation in
sports.
Akpabio, who personally cheered Peter to victory in the
interim title bout against Jameel in New York, late last
year, said he was committed to the promotion of sports as
a way of positively engaging and encouraging youths to
shun violence and militancy.
He, therefore, called on the relevant sports authorities
to evolve programmes that would gainfully shape the future
of Nigerian youths.
Meanwhile, streets of Akwa Ibom State again assumed a
carnival mood yesterday, shortly after Peter knocked out
Maskaev, when the boxing enthusiasts who kept vigil at
Ibom Plaza to watch the match erupted in celebration.
They chanted victory songs round the streets, waving in
the Nigerian flag.
Former light middleweight champion, Vitalis Ejiofor,
described Peter's victory as a sweet one, which means a
lot to Nigerians and Africans.
According to Ejiofor, wearing the crown once won by boxing
legends like Mohammed Ali, Larry Holmes, Mike Tyson, among
others, means a lot for boxing and Nigerian boxers.
He said: "The victory has gone a long way to show the
boxers that they can be ranked alongside the best in the
world if they work hard and remain disciplined."
He, therefore, urged the new champion to emulate his
predecessors that worked hard and remained on the throne
for a long time, reaping the dividends of their toil.
Former Olympian, Jeremaiah Okorodudu, has described
Peter's victory as the biggest turnover for Nigerian
boxing.
Okorodudu, speaking on the first-ever heavyweight title
fight to be held in Mexico, told The Guardian on phone
yesterday that Peter's victory would go a long way in
re-awakening Nigerians' passion for boxing.
He added: "It is a big victory for all of us. I am happy
not only for Samuel Peter alone, but for the game of
boxing generally. I am looking forward to seeing him
defend the title whenever the time comes. I want the
government and people of Akwa Ibom in particular to
celebrate this victory with a passion. I want Governor
Akpabio to use the opportunity of this victory to uplift
the level of boxing in the state.
"If you go to Akwa Ibom today, the young boxers are
suffering. There is no good boxing gymnasium for them and
I am very sure there are so many Samuel Peters waiting to
be discovered in the state. It is not all the boxers that
may be able to face what Samuel Peter went through in
life, so, the governor should use the opportunity of this
celebration to do something for the up-coming boxers."
He, however, thanked the governor and all Nigerians for
the support given to Peter in the build-up to the fight.
After he was declared winner of the bout, Peter affirmed
that he was better than the others in the heavyweight
division, saying: "I'm the best heavyweight in the world.
I'm undisputed...I can beat anyone. All of them are going
down."
With this victory, Peter has improved his record to 30
wins (23 knockouts) with one defeat by International
Boxing Federation (IBF) Champion, Wladimir Klitschko.
Already, he is eyeing a rematch with Klitschko to avenge
his loss.
"I'm going to get him ... I'm going to beat his brother
(Vitali). I'm going to tell him that I'm coming. I've got
two belts. He doesn't need the IBF. He needs this one.
He's going to come for this, and he'll get stopped," Peter
added.
(Source: Guardian Newspaper)
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