What a surprise!

Read about it here: http://fisticmystic.wordpress.com/2009/10/20/almost-unbelievable-kayongo-to-fight-james-todd-for-iba-title/

Also:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/boxing/8314695.stm

Wow! Very cool! Nice work Fistic on delivering this great news. When I talked with Muwendo, he spent as much time telling me how great Kanyongo was. He went as far as to say he punches with power like Phil Williams.

Very nice!  Good for them.  I know John Tandy has a ton of fighters from the UK in California now that he's trying to bring all over.  I think this is one of them.  

Whoa wait.....I thought Todd was someone else.  He has been a bust as a pro.......How does he get sanctioned for a title fight?  This is ridiculous.  My guess is that since Dean Chance is already going to be there for the Caleb fight he'll be glad to sanction another bout and collect the cash.

Should be an easy win for Kayongo.  Good for them.  I guess it's tough to match him until a 2-1 guy comes along.

2-1-1 is a disappointing start, but it might be a little overboard to call him a bust.

Still, I agree that it's awfully surprising that he's getting any kind of title fight at this point.

Yeah, bust is very harsh......My bad.  I still think a 2-1-1, who has a loss and a draw with debuting fighters, fighting in a 10 round fight is absolutely ridiculous.  

Keeping an eye on the web - Todd's fans are planning to invade St Paul for this show.  They're working with travel agencies to set up package deals - airfare, hotel rooms, and fight tix.  At least that's the chatter on his facebook page.

Will only a handful of Todd's supporters show up, or is a larger venue in order?  

--Last edited by fistic mystic on 2009-10-22 23:53:03 --

I'm happy for Caleb and especially Kayongo, and I hate to bring up the negative, but I really haven't paid too much attention to the IBA, and think of it about as highly as i do IBC root beer.

I went to the IBA website to find out more, and their most recent rankings are from November of 2007 and most of their titles are open. When I click on "about the IBA" it gives a summary of Dean Chance's professional baseball career. I have no idea what they are actually about. I welcome anyone to educate me.

I suppose its good for the casual fans, as they don't understand the alphabet organizations anyway, and being for a title can draw more casual fans in, but I thought i would raise the issue on here on just what kind of organization the IBA is.

Have you ever heard of a diploma mill?

The IBA is something similar, with the difference being that instead of paying for a diploma you're fighting for a belt.  It's a steppingstone, and if it gets the fighter some attention and a shot at better fights, then I guess it serves its purpose on the management end.

From the fan's perspective is a travesty, and that's a topic I've written about in the past.  If you'll recall Joey Abell and Teke Oruh, an American and an African, fought for a regional Americas title on an island in the Carribean!