This article was published in the Fiji Times on September 5, 1992.
Young Natewa Bay boxer Tevita Vakalalabure’s career received a boost after he won a split decision over veteran Sakaraia Ve at the National Gymnasium.
The 23-year-old entering this fight with eight knockout victories was fitter and showed more aggression to swing two of the three fights judges in his favour.
The fight itself was a lack-lustre affair with the boxers doing more circling and holding than fighting.
There were no knockdowns during the entire fight, the 3500-sell-out crowd had little to get excited about, Ve’s ducking and weaving and the boxers’ wild misses were the only things that aroused them.
Both boxers were unscathed after the fight and the few kilograms they lost were probably the only things that showed they has been through 10 rounds.
Ve didn’t look to interest in winning and was mostly tapping and pawing and threw few effective punches.
Vakalalabure, normally a nonsense, aggressive fighter, adopted a more cautious and defensive approach than any of his previous fights.
But he looked more purposeful and threw more punches, the victory is an important step forward for the upcoming fighter and should silence critics who were saying he would be mincemeat for Ve.
Fighting a man with more than 10 times experience was an eye-opener for Vakalalabure who was taken the full distance for the first time in his professional career.
In round two, Vakalalabure was stunned with Ve’s famous left hook but recovered quickly to hammer him on the ropes towards the end.
Ve’s lefty-hook was often on target but was not strong enough to slow Vakalalabure in any way, in fact it only alerted his opponent who tightened his defences.
In round six Ve was shaken with a combination to the head but Vakalalabure, unlike in his previous fights, lacked the instinct to move in for the kill.
Ve exploded with a series of hooks and combinations in round eight, but Vakalalabure withstood these well and kept working in the body.
The fight was still fairly even when the last round began but neither of the two seemed really willing to commit themselves even at this stage and this round ended like the rest.
