At the recent Golden Gloves at the Kaiapoi Club, near Christchurch, two members of Queenstown’s Remarkables Boxing club, Kelepi Saipaie and Manawa Rakete-Shea, won South Island titles.
The former took out the elite novice 85kg category and the latter, the elite novice 75kg category.
For Saipaie, 27, who moved to Queenstown from Tonga two and a-half years ago, it was his debut fight — as it was, fortunately, also his opponent’s.
He won by knocking out his opponent in the last 10 seconds of the final round.
"I always knew he was going to knock the dude out," coach Mikey Jenner says.
Jenner says Saipaie, who trained for eight months before his first fight, is a special talent.
"Keep your eyes peeled for this guy."
Rakete-Shea, 25, had two fights — his fourth and fifth — to secure his title, winning the first by knock-out and the second by majority decision.
Jenner says in the first he "just outclassed" his opponent, and in the second "his footwork was too much for his opponent".
For his next fight, Rakete-Shea will move up to three-minute rounds — "and then we’ll be expecting a lot more of a step-up of opponents".
Jenner believes the two "have the tools that can take them to national titles".
