Sell out expected for 'Rumble in the Rapa'

The full house signs will be out for the "Rumble in the 'Rapa" Muay Thai tournament to be held in the Featherston Anzac Hall on Wednesday, March 25.
That's the confident prediction from organiser Sue Latta who has been delighted with the early interest shown in the first event of its kind to be held in the Featherston township. So much so she reckons a capacity crowd of around 400 is practically guaranteed.
And Latta, herself the holder of four world Muay Thai or kick boxing titles and a silver and bronze medallist at world championship level, is "absolutely certain" that the 17-fight programme will provide action-packed entertainment.
"The emphasis in Muay Thai is on speed of thought and movement, you don't hang back and wait for things to happen," Latta said. "It's a true test of mental and physical strength."
Highlight on the Featherston card will be a five round battle for the vacant national women's junior lightweight title (up to 58.9kg) between Janna Vaughn, formerly of Palmerston North but now of Dunedin where she is attending Otago University, and Natasha Worden of New Plymouth.
Vaughn has twice been a bronze medallist at the world Muay Thai championships while Worden has also represented her country there, although without the same success as Vaughn.
Latta knows from past experience that Muay Thai fights can often produce upsets so while she believes Vaughn's proven record makes her the favourite she is loathe to rate her in the certainty category.
Not surprisingly many of the fighters involved in the Featherston tourney will be from the Muay Thai club formed there by Latta within the last year and which already has a membership of about 30.
Two of them, Nepia Poutu, and Alanna Gain won silver medals in their class at the last world championships and will be expected to win their "full fight" bouts against Sua Leota (Palmerston North) and Aroha Kingi (New Plymouth) respectively.
Another of the Featherston contingent is the "full fight" section will be George Murray who will come up against Tahares Ruatita of Palmerston North. They were matched up a tourney held in Masterton last month but the ring collapsed before a result could be found.
A feature of the novice bouts at the Anzac Hall will be the appearance of Featherston's Kelly Davis and her son Kirk. This could be a first for New Zealand as Sue Latta can't recall a mother and son ever appearing on the same Muay Thai programme at a tourney held in this country. "We've had fathers and sons and husbands and wifes but mother and son & no,that probably hasn't happened before," she said.
Greytown's Stacey Langford is also expected to make a bold showing in the novice class.