It’s always a delight to have MMA athletes in a promotion who possess intensity, character and technical skills.
These fighters bring so much value to Fight Night and are beneficial in terms of business and fan satisfaction.
Tumisang Madiba is one of those fighters. He almost always guarantees getting the MMA public speaking, whether it be for controversial off-set action or explosive attack in the hexagon.
If you look at his highlights reel, a handful of the build-ups consisted of ‘potential fight of the night’ talk.
Fights with Irshaad Sayed and Faeez Jacobs come to mind.
And this weekend, again, his match-up with Zimbabwe’s Sylvester Chipfumbu has been tipped to cash in at Carnival City at EFC74 on Saturday night.
Both Tumisang and Sylvester are coming off a loss, and this reality sets the tone for all-out survival and action with the aim of getting back on Winning Street.
Sylvester, who fights out of former bantamweight champion Demarte Pena’s gym, Ultimate MMA Fitness, is someone who almost compliments a fight that includes Tumisang, considering the Zimbabwean’s sharp karate cavalry.
A man with long reach, an aggressive approach and powerful striking, pitted against a predator who embraces the inside of the hexagon like he was born in it, makes only for a fight that could feel like a Wimbledon final.
“Madiba is a dangerous guy,” says Pena.
“He is a good boxer, he comes forward, and he has a decent submission game. He does a lot of guillotine chokes and rear-naked chokes, so that is where he will be more dangerous.
“But I feel that on the feet we will have the advantage for sure. Sylvester is a lot taller, he has the reach.”
The fact that all fights start on the feet, always counts in the favour of athletes who possess a natural striking game.
Submission artists and grapplers need to put in the work post ‘bell-ring’ round after round, and this is why Demarte feels that his athlete will have the upper hand.
The fact that the 12-0 former champ has also transformed his fighter has also padded his confidence regarding his prediction.
“When Sylvester came to us, he was more of a karate-based type of fighter. But I think that his stand-up is a little bit more composed. We had a goal to encourage him to implement a lot of striking in terms of boxing and mixing it up with his karate background, where his kicks come in to play.
“Madiba is dangerous on the ground, but Sylvester’s most improved areas have been his ground game. He has a top-class wrestling game so I feel that he will be able to dictate where the fight happens.
“This fight should be our fight to lose, Sylvester is ready for this fight,” added Demarte.
🇿🇼 @SylverGladiator vs 🇿🇦 @TumisangMadiba #EFC74 pic.twitter.com/1QsZn8p5gU
— EFC (@EFCworldwide) October 6, 2018
Demarte is currently serving a four-year ban after being tested positive for a banned substance. “I won’t be in Sylvester’s corner, but I will be on the outside,” says Demarte in support of his fighter.
Themba Gorimbo will be guiding Sylvester on Fight Night.
This fight is headlined by the featherweight championship bout between champion Igeu Kabesa and Calum Murrie.
@juliankiewietz