Martin Bakole and Joseph Parker are set to face off in a last-minute heavyweight clash in Riyadh. The fight came together quickly after Daniel Dubois fell ill just days before his scheduled IBF World Heavyweight Title bout with Parker.
Bakole, a Congolese boxer with a reputation for destructive performances, arrived in the early hours of fight day from Congo. He's known for his sparring claims, reportedly having demolished some of the best heavyweights in practice sessions. Parker, on the other hand, is one of the most in-form men in the division and had been preparing for his original fight with Dubois.
Michael Hunter, the only man to stop Bakole, shared his thoughts on the matchup. Hunter's record stands at 9 wins and 2 draws in recent years, though his career has been marked by periods of inactivity. He said:
"Joseph Parker's my boy, shout out to Joseph Parker. No hate. I always get crucified for telling the truth. Hopefully he doesn't take this in a bad way, but I just don't see him beating Martin Bakole."
Hunter believes Bakole will stop Parker in the mid to later rounds. He compared the potential outcome to Bakole's fight against Jared Anderson, suggesting that Parker's experience might not be enough to overcome Bakole's size advantage.
"When you're big like that, he's already in shape … You're not gonna be able to tell if he's out of shape or in shape … It might be a little bit longer [than the Anderson fight] so you will definitely see a little bit of a break. But overall I don't see Joseph Parker getting through that."
It's worth noting that Bakole's only loss came against Hunter himself, in a 10th round stoppage. Billy Nelson, Bakole's trainer, later stated that his fighter shouldn't have been in the ring that night, hinting at an injury.
Parker does have one advantage: he's been in training for a fight, while Bakole took this on short notice. However, Hunter doesn't think this will visibly affect Bakole's performance due to his size.
The heavyweight clash serves as the co-main event for the night. The main event features an undisputed light-heavyweight rematch between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol.
