Video: Alarming moment a disoriented boxing champion swings at thin air during fight before being hospitalized

In a terrifying moment that reminded fans just how dangerous boxing can be, a South African fighter has been hospitalized after swinging at thin air, looking for an opponent who wasn't in front of him. The shocking moment caused the referee to immediately wave off the bout, which was for the WBF African lightweight title.

Simiso Buthelezi (4-1) faced Siphesihle Mntungwa (7-1-2) for the title. At 2:43 in the 10th round, it appeared as though Buthelezi was cruising his way to a decision victory. Buthelezi even knocked Mntungwa down to the mat and through the ropes.

Shockingly, as Mntungwa got to his feet and the referee restarted the action, it was Buthelezi who stunned the crowd by losing all sense of what was happening, swinging wildly at nothing.

Watch the moment below:

Twitter user Tim Boxeo then provided follow-up information about the situatio,n and the health and wellbeing of Simiso Buthelezi.

"At the time of the stoppage, Simiso Buthelezi was almost certainly headed to a 10 round decision victory and was removed from the ring under immediate medical care. The WBF made the right decision to postpone the belt ceremony for Mntungwa at the moment."

The account then added a health update on the boxer:

"UPDATE: Sources share that Simiso Buthelezi is currently in stable condition in South Africa and in the next few days more will be learned as to what could have potentially caused a very scary and odd response in the ring."

It was recorded as the first defeat for Buthelezi in his boxing career. While he will surely be disappointed with the loss having been so close to victory, he will no doubt be thankful to the referee, who has been hailed for his stoppage.

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Aljamain Sterling confident Alexander Volkov was out-boxing Jairzinho Rozenstruik, agrees with stoppage

In a week that saw referees in both boxing and MMA praised and criticized, UFC bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling has let it be known which side he falls on after another weekend that saw a contentious result in the UFC.

Heavyweights Alexander Volkov and Jairzinho Rozenstruik headlined the UFC Vegas 56 event. However, some fans were left disappointed by the result.

Just over two minutes into the first round, Herb Dean waved off the contest after an onslaught of punches from Volkov, who put his skilled boxing on full display. Although Rozenstruik was clearly rocked, the heavyweight was able to return to his feet and move as referee Herb Dean stepped in.

'Funk Master' ultimately believes that if Dean hadn't stopped the fight, it was heading for a more conclusive Volkov win anyway.

The victory for the No.7-ranked Volkov was the perfect response after his first-round submission loss to Tom Aspinall in March. For Rozenstruik, it is the first time in his career that he has lost two fights in a row.