Virgil Kalakoda
Encyclopedia
Virgil "The Conqueror" Kalakoda (born December 24, 1979) is a South Africa
n welterweight
boxer
and kickboxer, fighting out of Full Body Impact Gym in Sydney, Australia. He is former light-middleweight boxing champion, currently competing in K-1 MAX
.
when he was in his K-1
prime was a huge influence to him.
He had 10 amateur boxing
fights, with only one loss to Ruben Groenewald in the final of the national tryouts.
. He went undefeated for his first seven professional bouts before suffering his first loss to Pascal Mtungu in 1997. In 2000 Virgil had his first professional title fight losing to Joseph Makaringe by tenth round TKO for the South African welterweight title. Virgil responded well to this setback winning his next thirteen fights between 2000 and 2003 and picked up the I.B.C.
light middleweight world title and I.B.F.
and W.B.N. intercontinental light middleweight titles. He suffered his first defeat in four years when he lost via split decision to fellow South African William Gare in a non title fight in Capetown. After a win against Wahab Adebisi he decided to move into the world of kickboxing.
debut on May 4, 2005 at the K-1 World MAX 2005 World Tournament Open against former champion Albert Kraus
with the prize being a place at the quarter final stage of the 2005 K-1 MAX final. Virgil was unable to defeat the 2002 champion but impressed enough to be offered a super fight at the final event. After racking up a couple of wins with the promotion he was invited back the following year to take place in qualifying only to lose to the 2004 champion Buakaw Por. Pramuk. Once again Virgil impressed in the split decision extension round defeat and was invited to take part in the quarter finals despite the loss. At the final he met Andy Souwer
in the quarter finals and suffered his first stoppage defeat.
Later that year Virgil made his first (and so far only) appearance in Shoot boxing's
number one event – the S-Cup. He met fellow boxer Daniel Dawson
in the quarter final stage but was unable to proceed losing by unanimous decision
. Despite early initial promise with the K-1 organization Virgil's record has been patchy – mixing good wins against the likes of Takayuki Kohiruimaki
and Ole Laursen
with a number of defeats including a shock loss against Se Ki Kim at the K-1 Fighting Network Khan in 2007.
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
n welterweight
Welterweight
Welterweight is a weight class division in combat sports. Originally the term "welterweight" was used only in boxing, but other combat sports like kickboxing, taekwondo and mixed martial arts also began to use it for their own weight division system...
boxer
Boxing
Boxing, also called pugilism, is a combat sport in which two people fight each other using their fists. Boxing is supervised by a referee over a series of between one to three minute intervals called rounds...
and kickboxer, fighting out of Full Body Impact Gym in Sydney, Australia. He is former light-middleweight boxing champion, currently competing in K-1 MAX
K-1
K-1 is a defunct world-wide kickboxing promotion based in Tokyo, Japan founded by Kazuyoshi Ishii, a formerKyokushin karate practitioner. K-1 combines stand up techniques from Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo, Savate, San Shou, kickboxing, western-style boxing, and other martial arts...
.
Early career
Virgil grew up in Cape Town, South Africa. His dad Steve Kalakoda was a boxer and he used to go to the gym with him, and learnt by watching, since he was about 4 years old. Growing up around the likes of Mike BernardoMike Bernardo
Michael "Mike" Bernardo is a South African former kickboxer and boxer from Cape Town. Bernardo is known as Beru-chan in Japan, where he has taken part in K-1 World GPs since 1994...
when he was in his K-1
K-1
K-1 is a defunct world-wide kickboxing promotion based in Tokyo, Japan founded by Kazuyoshi Ishii, a formerKyokushin karate practitioner. K-1 combines stand up techniques from Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo, Savate, San Shou, kickboxing, western-style boxing, and other martial arts...
prime was a huge influence to him.
He had 10 amateur boxing
Amateur boxing
Amateur boxing is practised at the collegiate level, at the Olympic Games and Commonwealth Games, and in many other venues sponsored by amateur boxing associations. Amateur boxing bouts are short in duration and fighters wear head protection, so this type of competition prizes point-scoring rather...
fights, with only one loss to Ruben Groenewald in the final of the national tryouts.
Professional Boxing Career
Virgil turned pro in 1996 at 18 years of age defeating Patrick Ngqoba by TKO on his debut in Cape TownCape Town
Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality...
. He went undefeated for his first seven professional bouts before suffering his first loss to Pascal Mtungu in 1997. In 2000 Virgil had his first professional title fight losing to Joseph Makaringe by tenth round TKO for the South African welterweight title. Virgil responded well to this setback winning his next thirteen fights between 2000 and 2003 and picked up the I.B.C.
International Boxing Council
The International Boxing Council is a boxing organization. The IBC titles are often the beginning for professional boxers who progress to high prestigious titles....
light middleweight world title and I.B.F.
International Boxing Federation
The International Boxing Federation or IBF is one of four major organizations recognized by IBHOF which sanction world championship boxing bouts, alongside the WBA, WBC and WBO.- History :...
and W.B.N. intercontinental light middleweight titles. He suffered his first defeat in four years when he lost via split decision to fellow South African William Gare in a non title fight in Capetown. After a win against Wahab Adebisi he decided to move into the world of kickboxing.
K-1 MAX
Virgil made his K-1 MAXK-1
K-1 is a defunct world-wide kickboxing promotion based in Tokyo, Japan founded by Kazuyoshi Ishii, a formerKyokushin karate practitioner. K-1 combines stand up techniques from Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo, Savate, San Shou, kickboxing, western-style boxing, and other martial arts...
debut on May 4, 2005 at the K-1 World MAX 2005 World Tournament Open against former champion Albert Kraus
Albert Kraus
Albert “The Hurricane” Kraus is a Dutch welterweight kickboxer. He was the first K-1 World MAX 2002 champion and has also held four separate world titles in kickboxing and Muay Thai...
with the prize being a place at the quarter final stage of the 2005 K-1 MAX final. Virgil was unable to defeat the 2002 champion but impressed enough to be offered a super fight at the final event. After racking up a couple of wins with the promotion he was invited back the following year to take place in qualifying only to lose to the 2004 champion Buakaw Por. Pramuk. Once again Virgil impressed in the split decision extension round defeat and was invited to take part in the quarter finals despite the loss. At the final he met Andy Souwer
Andy Souwer
Andreas "Andy" Souwer is a Dutch welterweight shoot boxer. He is two time K-1 World MAX champion as well as a three time Shootboxing World tournament champion, fighting out of Mejiro Gym, Amsterdam, Netherlands....
in the quarter finals and suffered his first stoppage defeat.
Later that year Virgil made his first (and so far only) appearance in Shoot boxing's
Shoot boxing
Shoot boxing is both a combat sport and a stand-up fighting promotion company based in Tokyo, Japan. The organization was founded by former kickboxer Caesar Takeshi in 1985....
number one event – the S-Cup. He met fellow boxer Daniel Dawson
Daniel Dawson
Daniel "The Rock" Dawson is an Australian super welterweight kickboxer and boxer, fighting out of Perth, Western Australia.-Boxing Career:Daniel Dawson has a boxing record of 34 wins and 2 losses...
in the quarter final stage but was unable to proceed losing by unanimous decision
Unanimous decision
A unanimous decision is a winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts and others sports involving striking in which all three judges agree on which fighter won the match....
. Despite early initial promise with the K-1 organization Virgil's record has been patchy – mixing good wins against the likes of Takayuki Kohiruimaki
Takayuki Kohiruimaki
is a Japanese welterweight kickboxer and karateka competing in K-1 MAX. His real name is Takayuki Kohiruimaki. He started calling himself Taishin Kohiruimaki in 2008.-Young age:...
and Ole Laursen
Ole Laursen
Ole 'Iron Fist' Laursen is a Danish welterweight Muay Thai kickboxer and lightweight mixed martial artist, fighting out of Ubon Ratchatani, Thailand.-Biography:...
with a number of defeats including a shock loss against Se Ki Kim at the K-1 Fighting Network Khan in 2007.
Titles
- 2002-03 W.B.N. light middleweight Inter-continental champion (2 title defences)
- 2002 I.B.F.International Boxing FederationThe International Boxing Federation or IBF is one of four major organizations recognized by IBHOF which sanction world championship boxing bouts, alongside the WBA, WBC and WBO.- History :...
light middleweight Inter-Continental champion - 2001 I.B.C.International Boxing CouncilThe International Boxing Council is a boxing organization. The IBC titles are often the beginning for professional boxers who progress to high prestigious titles....
light middleweight world champion
Kickboxing Record
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Boxing Record
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See also
- List of male kickboxers
- List of kickboxing organizations
- List of K-1 Events