By the numbers, Oleksandr Usyk is one of the most effective heavyweights of this era and has shown an incredible ability to stand up to bigger men.
Those efforts were perhaps never more apparent than in the Ukrainian’s latest fight against Tyson Fury where he survived an onslaught in the middle rounds only to find another gear and hurt ‘The Gypsy King’ considerably.
The split decision victory saw Usyk crowned undisputed for a second time in his career having previously achieved the status at cruiserweight.
With wins over Anthony Joshua, Daniel Dubois, Derek Chisora and Fury in the top division, many feel he is unbeatable within the current crop. That isn’t true if Martin Bakole’s sparring stories are to believed.
Speaking to TalkSPORT, Bakole, who is ranked number 1 with the WBA, doubled down on the claim that he ‘knocked out’ the first four-belt heavyweight champion in history when working together in the gym.
“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 Usyk’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.
“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.”
Usyk has previously responded to Bakole’s version of events by saying ‘people shouldn’t believe everything they hear.’
The Congolese heavyweight returns on August 3 where he will face America’s next heavyweight hope, Jared Anderson, providing far and away the toughest test of the 24-year-old’s career so far.
Bakole’s sparring stories – which also include Dubois and Joshua – have come to define him somewhat in the sport, but a win over Anderson will show he truly means business in the ring.
