Cape Town — Emmanuel Sita may not have experienced the perfect EFC debut, but it was not all that bad.
At EFC Fight Night, the Congolese (0-1) failed to get his hand raised in an entertaining fight against Shannon van Tonder (3-0). The fight ended with Van Tonder submitting Sita via rear-naked choke in the second round.
The bout was of such a nature that both athletes walked away with a Restonic double bed to the value of R16 000. A welcomed reward for Sita, but on Saturday night at EFC94, Sita is hoping to be on the winning side of his fight so that he can sleep even better this coming week.
“I felt great and proud of myself for winning that performance of that night,” says Sita who will welcome Ghana’s Jonathan Lamptey (3-0) to the Extreme Fighting Championship hexagon.
“Even though I wasn't able to go to the end of the tunnel and get the win, winning that performance bonus reminded me of my worth. And I just proved to myself that I was blessed and gifted with a skillset. With more dedication I could achieve great things,” says the Pride Fighting Academy athlete who is under the tutelage of coach Mike Mouneimne.
“I am going to do more of that last fight and more tomorrow night. I never took the loss in a negative light, but as a lesson for myself.”
Sita, an electric fighter who enjoys testing his opponents and pushing the pace once he gets comfortable on the feet, can change levels at whim.
His opponent, Lamptey will be a good test for Sita. The Ghanaian is riding a three-fight win streak with three knockouts to boot. A light-footed martial artist who has made both muay thai and Senegalese wrestling his bread and butter.
It is not clear which version of these athletes will be on display in Paulshof, Johannesburg on Saturday night, but it is no secret that both have an appetite for the stand-up game, a recipe that could set up another fight of the night.
“I would like to encourage fans across the world to tune in, I am going to produce some surprises tomorrow,” added Sita.
Both fighters made weight on Friday, coming in at 144.5lbs for their Featherweight bout.
EFC 94 MAIN CARD BOUTS | STARTING 18:00 CAT
BANTAMWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MAIN EVENT
Sindile Manengela 134.8lbs (RSA) vs. Cameron Saaiman 134lbs (RSA)
FLYWEIGHT FIGHT
Salahuddin Plaatjies 124.9lbs vs. Magno Alves 125lbs (BRA)
HEAVYWEIGHT FIGHT
Sholto Luiters 248.3lbs (RSA) vs. Nico Yamdjie 259.6lbs (CAM)
WELTERWEIGHT CO-MAIN EVENT
Smit Steyn 168.7lbs (RSA) vs. Jonathan Euro 172.5lbs (GHA) - Euro did not make weight
MIDDLEWEIGHT FIGHT
Jaco du Plessis 184.8lbs (RSA) vs. Khulekani Hlongwa 182.7lbs (RSA)
EFC 94 PRELIM CARD BOUTS | STARTING 14:30 CAT
FEATHERWEIGHT FIGHT
Jonathan Lamptey 144.5lbs (GHA) vs. Emmanuel Sita 144.5lbs (ROTC)
LIGHTWEIGHT FIGHT
Rodrique Kena 158.1lbs (DRC) vs. Serge Kasanda 152.4lbs (DRC) - Kena did not make weight
BANTAMWEIGHT FIGHT
Johannes Rudolph 134.3lbs (RSA) vs. Katiso Matime 133.6lbs (RSA)
LIGHTWEIGHT FIGHT
Guelor Sondi 155lbs (DRC) vs. Elvis Ngwalangwala 153.7lbs (RSA)
FLYWEIGHT FIGHT
Tyral Louw 120.9lbs (RSA) vs. Kgaugelo Moitšhela 125lbs (RSA)
LIGHTWEIGHT FIGHT
Yebo Ntambwe 150.9lbs (DRC) vs. Musa Sethwape 151.8lbs (RSA)
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