Phillips: “Kruger will bounce back”
EFC Africa 28 was held at the Coca-Cola Dome on Thursday, March 27, and fight fans gathered at the venue to enjoy the thrills and excitement that only the country’s fastest growing sport can produce.
The hype surrounding the scheduled middleweight title fight between JP “Tinkerbell” Kruger and Garreth “Soldierboy” McLellan was tangible, and fans were hoping for a encounter on the night.
Things did not go according to plan for challenger Kruger, who fights under the banner of Brakpan’s Xtreme Kickboxing Technologies (XKT) Pro League.
The champion (McLellan) retained his belt in a brief but furious fight with Kruger.
After weathering a combination of strikes from Kruger at the onset, McLellan calmly clinched and worked Kruger to the ground.
There were tense moments when Kruger looked close to sinking an armbar, but those were short-lived, as McLellan took his back and sank in a rear naked choke, to take the victory three minutes and five seconds into the first round of the scheduled five-round title fight.
“It’s back to the drawing board for JP, as well as the coaching team,” said Kruger’s head coach, Raymond Phillips.
“There were a couple of things that he didn’t do according to our game plan, and we will need to address these.”
He added that the loss is a learning curve for both the fighter and his coaches (prior to the title fight Kruger had not lost in five EFC fights).
“As the coaching team, we decided that we will be a little bit more aware of outside influences, like the hype generated on social media, and try ignoring those things, because they create a lot of pressure.”
He also praised McLellan and his camp for the respect and sportsmanship they showed after the fight.
“This is not the end,” Phillips added.
“JP now knows how it feels to lose and I believe in my heart of hearts that he will still be champion.
“Now we will just have a super champion.”
The next event, EFC Africa 29, will take place on Thursday, May 1, in the Carnival City Big Top Arena.
