Oleksandr Usyk has cemented his place as the top heavyweight in boxing. The Ukrainian fighter's recent victory over Tyson Fury in Saudi Arabia left no doubt about his dominance in the division.
Usyk's win against Fury came by unanimous decision, allowing him to keep his WBC, WBA, WBO, and Ring Magazine titles. It's not the first time he's beaten Fury, though. This victory marks his second win over the British boxer. Usyk has also defeated Anthony Joshua twice and current IBF champion Daniel Dubois.
But a new challenger is making some bold claims. Martin Bakole, the WBA's number one ranked fighter, says he's got what it takes to end Usyk's reign. Bakole bases his confidence on past sparring sessions with the champion.
In an interview with TalkSport, Bakole didn't hold back:
"I don't lie, I don't like to lie. I always tell the truth. If you watch BOXXER's video you will see. I was live on Sky Sports and Oleksandr's manager came behind me and said 'This guy is going to be world champion tomorrow' because he knows, who I am, he was in the gym when I gave Usyk a hard time."
Bakole went on to make even bolder claims about their sparring sessions:
"Usyk never even touched me, I smashed him and knocked him out. I knocked him out with a body shot. I was getting out of the ring and they said he will need one week to recover."
Bakole's trainer, Billy Nelson, backs up these claims. In a conversation with Sky Sports, Nelson shared his thoughts:
"I do believe Martin has got the skills and ability to dethrone Usyk. More importantly, I think Usyk and his team think Martin has got the ability to do it. They have shared a ring on quite a few occasions, namely in Ukraine and Dubai."
Nelson pointed out what makes Bakole a unique challenger:
"The attributes Martin has got is unlike others; he will close the gap down against Usyk very quickly and set traps. I haven't seen traps being set in his two fights against Tyson. You can rest assured that Usyk knows Martin is very dangerous, probably the most dangerous, guy out there."
The trainer ended with a bold prediction:
"The best challenger out there for Oleksandr Usyk, who is a phenomenal fighter, would be Martin Bakole. I believe, and more importantly, Martin believes, he would knock him out."
As for Usyk, he's got options. He could choose a rematch with Daniel Dubois or even move back down to cruiserweight to try and unify the belts there again. Whatever he decides, it's clear that Martin Bakole is ready and waiting for his shot at the champion.
