Ducorsports Exclusive: Senegal’s New British Masters Belt Holder on the Life-Changing Interaction with British Professional Boxer and Former World Heavyweight Champion, David Haye
Senegal’s Matar Wade Sambou is the newest Masters Belt holder in the UK which he scooped this October against a very robust opponent in British boxer, Tommy Jacobs during the Queensbury Boxing League.
October 14th, 2017 was the day the Senegalese’s star rose with a career-high win, as he posed for the cameras, flaunting the brown belt and flanked by fiancée Anthea Gregg hours after his magical triumph.
The feat he so now boasts of, wouldn’t have happened had he not heeded the advice of British professional boxer and former world heavyweight champion, David Haye. His chance at meeting with The Hayemaker occurred years ago in his native Senegalese home where the 37-year-old was on a visit to scout in a local tournament.
It turned out that Sambou was one of those scheduled to fight on the night that led to a life-changer after catching Haye’s eye in no time. The British boxer recommended Sambou move to the UK where with proper facilities at his disposal, he could live to up his potentials should he qualify for the Olympics.
The soon-to-be 34-year-old heeded the erstwhile World champion’s advice and soon found himself in Kent, South East of England. The chilling cold and cuisines were a sharp contrast to what he knew in Dakar, Senegal’s capital, but he adapted nevertheless.
He then began treading the path that morphed him into what he is today but amateur boxing was the first call.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“I met David Haye in Senegal when he came to watch the boxing there. He told me I should go to the UK if I qualify for the Olympics. He said I had real talent,”[/perfectpullquote]
he said.
This set the pace forward and has not looked back since, winning sixteen (16) semi-professional fights, drawing one and losing only two. He has since climbed a division up, earning him a pro-boxing license. His first bout in the division began with the sensational dismantling of Lithuanian hard-man Tadas Stulginskas in just one minute forty-one seconds in the first round.
Many began keeping tabs on his development by this time, following his victory over a highly favored Stulginkas. Today, his statistics read as three professional fight wins, one defeat.
“I have won three pro fights and lost one. At the Semi-pro level, I have sixteen (16) semi-pro wins, drawing one and losing two,” he told Ducorsports from England in an exclusive interview.
Best fight brings Masters Belt
Stix pix photography
Dubbed Tiger, the Senegalese’s rise, boxing pundits say, is the by-product of commitment. One of the toughest big-punching stars of his weight category, Sambou wasted little time in bringing Tommy Jacobs down.
He went into the fight as an underdog but came out unblemished despite being accorded just two weeks of preparation for a battle of that magnitude. The fight was marred by point-deductions after the arbiter adjudged that Sambou hit opponent Jacobs on the back of his head, which he denies calling it ‘cheating’.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“My best fight was my last fight against Tommy Jacobs and winning the British Master title. My worst fight was when I have been cheated out of the win. Winning the belt was a dream come true. It’s hard to have that opportunity. I only had 2 weeks’ notice for that fight. So training was tough,”[/perfectpullquote]
he added.
Racial Abuse
Sambou, who won bronze in the African Games, claims he was racially abused by his adversary Jacobs’ girlfriend. Standing a class apart, Tiger brooded over what he calls the preferential treatment given to Jacobs because ‘he’s a match ticket-seller’.
According to the 33-year-old, his team and girlfriend came under torrents of racial abuse from Jacobs’ fans in the aftermath of the bout and had to be escorted by security to safety – an incident he believes shouldn’t be overlooked by the boxing authorities.
[perfectpullquote align=”full” cite=”” link=”” color=”” class=”” size=””]“Now I have to mention about Tommy’s girlfriend who got in the ring shouting in my ear that ‘I’m a black c*nt’ and his fans that continued to be racist throughout the whole match and led to me and my team having to be escorted out of the ring, and then escorted to my car by the security. Massive thanks to them for keeping my fiancé and team safe,”[/perfectpullquote]
Sambou who idolizes Mike Tyson continued.
Featured Photo: Stix pix photography
