Martin Bakole and his team are adamant that he has always struggled to get the marquee names in the heavyweight division. He has now said he ‘can’t wait anymore’ and has named three people he would like to fight.
Bakole is 30 years old and in his last fight made another great statement with a fourth-round knock out of the famously tough Frenchman Carlos Takam out in Saudi Arabia.
He has lost only one fight, and that was against Michael Hunter back in 2018, and since then had clocked up victories against the likes of Tony Yoka and Sergey Kuzman.
Bakole and his trainer Billy Nelson often claim he is the most avoided fighter in the division, but his new position as the number one WBA contender will surely go some way to helping him get the big fights he so craves.
Speaking to IFL TV, Bakole confirmed he is going down the WBA route in 2024.
“I’m looking forward to fighting for the belt and for the WBA to confirm who I’m fighting next. This is my year.”
He then name-checked three boxers he is most keen to face.
“I want Joshua, I want Daniel Dubois but he is number three, or I want [Regular Champion] Manuel Charr.”
Finally, he stated that he is in a rush to get his shot at the belts having now had 20 fights already.
“I’m working hard back in the gym, I’ve been working hard to be in this position, and I told my team I don’t have time to waste. I need to get this belt. I want to smash the champions and take all the belts.”
Right now Joshua has his hands full with his fight against Francis Ngannou, though Dubois or Charr certainly seem like realistic options for Bakole.