The Joseph Parker vs Martin Bakole fight has got the whole boxing world talking.
Parker was set to challenge Daniel Dubois for his IBF heavyweight title, as part of the Artur Beterbiev vs. Dmitry Bivol rematch card in Saudi Arabia this Saturday.
Those plans were scuppered on Thursday when it was revealed that Dubois was suffering from illness, and was forced to withdraw from the contest.
With a number of opponents linked to face Parker, it was a shock name that got the call, with top heavyweight contender Bakole taking the fight on 48 hours notice.
The weigh-in took place on Friday, with the New Zealander coming in at a career heaviest weight of 267lbs, while Bakole doesn’t land in Saudi Arabia until the early hours of Saturday morning.
One fellow heavyweight who knows Parker and Bakole well is Derek Chisora, after fighting Parker on two occasions and being linked to a clash with Bakole for a number of years.
Chisora has given his prediction for the short notice bout, making the shock claim that he feels Bakole will win the fight by knockout.
“Martin Bakole is a warrior and full respect to my brother for taking this big step up.
“He hasn’t trained for a while, we have to understand that, he’s going to be overweight and I believe rounds 1 to 3 are going to be hard for him, but after that he’s going to get into the groove and he’s going to knock Joseph Parker out.”
Top pundit Teddy Atlas has also made his prediction for the fight, believing that Bakole could be a tougher opponent than Dubois was.
