Oleksandr Usyk has received mandatory challengers for two of his three titles, Bakole has dropped out of the running for now
Alexander Usik. Photo – Getty Images
The boxing evening that took place in Riyadh on February 22, most likely, in addition to the rematch for the title of absolute world champion in the light heavyweight division, was conceived by Turki Al ash-Sheikh as a presentation of the future fight between Oleksandr Usyk and Daniel Dubois for the absolute title in the Royal Division. But, as often happens, everything did not just go according to plan: the results of the fights in Saudi Arabia changed the alignment in the heavyweight division , Usyk received mandatory challengers for two of his three titles, Bakole has dropped out of the number of contenders for now.
The Bakole Failure
It all started with Dubois. The IBF heavyweight champion fell ill two days before his fight with the interim WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker and withdrew from the fight, the winner of which was supposed to be Usyk's opponent. Finding an equivalent replacement in a short time is an almost impossible task, but the organizers managed to do it.
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WBO International champion Martin Bakole (21-1, 16 KOs), who is considered a big prospect in the division, looked like a worthy and even dangerous opponent. Except for two things.
First: Martin hardly trained hard, considering that he planned his fight for May, did not have time to acclimatize (he did not even make it to the weigh-in) and took the fight too lightly.
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Second: Parker's form – Joseph was phenomenally prepared. As a result – a bright victory for the New Zealander already in the second round and a serious blow to Bakole's reputation.
Zhilei's Pension
It is unlikely that 41-year-old Chinese giant Zhang Zhilei, whose two biggest victories are victories over Joyce, was seriously considered as a possible opponent for Usyk, but his fight with the Ukrainian could be well sold.
Alas, Zhilei failed. Undefeated German heavyweight Agit Kabayel (26-0, 18 KOs) defeated Zhang ahead of schedule, winning the interim WBC heavyweight title, which, by the way, was presented to the winner by Usyk. The Ukrainian, it seems, specially flew to Riyadh to announce the fight with Dubois.
Who's going to attack Usik now?
Of course, the most desirable and likely opponent for the Ukrainian remains Dubois. But the question of when the Briton will “recover” and regain his fighting form remains open. Plus, Daniel failed to prove his right to fight Usyk with a resounding victory. Moreover, it is possible that after Tyson's next retirement, Fury, Hearn and Warren will organize a fight between the two most popular British fighters today, arranging a rematch between Dubois and Joshua.
Moreover, as was already mentioned above, the boxing evening in Riyadh determined two mandatory contenders for Usyk's titles: Agit Kabayel according to the WBC, and Joseph Parker according to the WBO. The latter has already addressed Alexander, challenging the Ukrainian to a fight.
As for Bakole, the Congolese has dropped out of the contenders for at least a couple of fights. Usyk's decision to fight him after Martin's lackluster and even embarrassing performance in Riyadh will, to put it mildly, not be understood.
The rematch with Fury was a voluntary defense for Usyk. Now it 's time for mandatory ones. And if Kabayel is not serious yet, with all due respect to the German, then a fight with Parker does not look unlikely now.