Congolese heavyweight Martin Bakole has launched a scathing attack on Anthony Joshua, vowing to knock him out after dealing with Nigeria’s Efe Ajagba in their upcoming International Boxing Federation title eliminator.
Bakole’s outburst came in response to Joshua’s recent backing of Ajagba to win their eliminator bout, which will determine the mandatory challenger for IBF champion Daniel Dubois.
In a video posted on his X account, Bakole said, “Hey Anthony Joshua, this video is for you. I wanted to call you out, you’re talking s*** about Ajagba saying Ajagba is going to beat me. Shame on you, how many times did I call you out? How many times did I ask you to fight in Africa? You should feel ashamed of yourself. I want to fight you, I want to knock you out.”
Joshua, who is currently visiting family in Nigeria, had earlier backed his fellow Nigerian to triumph. “Two giants of Africa coming together to collide. It’s going to be an interesting fight,” Joshua said. “Efe is a good boxer, and obviously, I’m going to support Efe, even though he doesn’t support me. I’m backing him because we are from the same place, and I really want to see him do well.”
Bakole, who referenced Joshua’s recent knockout loss to Dubois at Wembley Stadium, added, “Look at Daniel Dubois, I broke his nose twice when sparring and he knocked you out cold. I will knock you out in the first round.”
The IBF title eliminator between Bakole and Ajagba, initially scheduled for February, has been postponed and will now take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, at a later date.
Top Rank vice president Carl Moretti confirmed the new arrangement for the highly anticipated clash. “It’s agreed to,” Moretti said. “In Riyadh. It was supposed to be on the February show but they moved it off, so I anticipate it will be on whatever the next show is after February.”
