"Blood, sweat and tears" is a phrase that epitomises the boxing game.
And there were bucketloads of all three commodities in the ring at the Orlando Community Hall at the weekend, after Mzonka Fana's stunning points win over Filipino Randy Suico in a WBC super featherweight title eliminator.
In the same arena in which Nelson Mandela honed his boxing skills many years ago, Fana was dropped in the second and fourth rounds, but fought back to win a close decision with a spirited display of boxing.
There were murmurings of "hometown decision" afterwards, but while he was a touch fortunate, Fana nevertheless gave as good as he got and, on many occasions, shook the previously unbeaten Filipino, who had won 21 straight fights, only two of which went the distance.
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Fana, the man from Khayelitsha's Site C township, was hanging on for dear life in the 12th round and, when the bell signalled the end of the fight, his emotions got the better of him.
He headed straight for his corner and knelt down in prayer, as the tears, the blood and the sweat came pouring down his face after the most gruelling 36 minutes of boxing he's endured in his 29 years.
When he was joined by Zola Koti, his trainer for the last 15 years, both shed tears of joy as the years of hard work reaped rich rewards.
Fana is now the mandatory challenger for the WBC super featherweight title held by the great Erik Morales, who has six months in which to defend it against Fana.
"Mzonka's got a big heart. Like him, I'm a very emotional guy and I couldn't hold back the tears after the fight. I said to him 'let's thank God, He has been there for us for so many years. This is the time to say thank you'," said Koti on Sunday. And God was kind when the judges' decision came.
"The fight was tough, tough, tough. He's a strong guy and in the last round he caught me and was looking to finish me off, but God saved me. My legs were wobbly, but I managed to outjab him. I want to thank everyone who supported me," said Fana on Sunday.
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This article was originally published on page 18 of Daily News on May 31, 2004
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