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Has Joseph Parker managed to land a more dangerous opponent in Martin Bakole at Riyadh Season?
Daniel Dubois was a dangerous enough opponent for Joseph Parker to begin with.
His devastating fifth-round KO of Anthony Joshua , which included four knockdowns, will tell you that as the signature September victory only boosted the IBF heavyweight world champion’s fighting profile to put the boxing world on further notice of his growing power.
But in withdrawing from Saturday night’s fight against Parker due to illness, Dubois was replaced by Martin Bakole at Riyadh Season’s The Last Crescendo at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and live on DAZN pay-per-view, which can be purchased here .
Now, the questions beg: Is Parker facing an even more dangerous opponent in the late replacement?
It is definitely arguable.
If Dubois’ knockout power is ferocious, then Bakole’s KO power is downright nightmarish.
The 6-foot-6, 284-pound Congolese heavyweight showed the boxing world just that, derailing a then-undefeated 25-year-old Jared “The Real Big Baby” Anderson’s upward trajectory by handing him a demoralizing fifth-round TKO last summer.
With the eye-popping statement victory, the 31-year-old Bakole (21-1, 16 KOs) instantly made himself a heavyweight contender and threat. He also drew comparisons to Boxing Hall of Famer and former two-time heavyweight world champion George Foreman for their penchant of producing blunt-force trauma with their noticeably heavy hands.
It is a comparison that Bakole even embraced and spoke about on former welterweight world champion Shawn Porter’s “The PorterWay Podcast” following his emphatic KO of Anderson. Especially how they both, at times, tuck their hands below their waist only to explode upwards with a big shot.
"If you watch 'Big' George Foreman, sometimes his hands are like that because I can't put my hands down if I'm not feeling anything coming from my opponent," Bakole pointed out. "I will test his jab. If he doesn't have a good jab, if his jab is weak, I'll take his jab to land my left hook. If he's got a good jab, I'll never put my hand down."
Parker (35-3, 23 KOs), a former WBO heavyweight world champion, will likely test that notion with his potent jab. The New Zealander possesses a speedy power jab, shows agility in the manner at which he moves around the ring and changes levels toward landing punches with explosive pop.
Plus, he has a sharpened sense of resolve.
Last March, Parker, 33, overcame two knockdowns at the hands of Zhilei Zhang to score a majority decision over the Chinese fighter.
If Bakole is able to smother and corner Parker, dropping the former champ, would he be able to rise off the canvas?
Or perhaps the better question is could he make it back on his feet?
Bakole’s power appears to be different and in the top tier of heavyweights. Saturday night will either demonstrate how Bakole, as a late replacement, becomes a terror for Parker or how the seasoned New Zealander proves that Bakole is not ready for the next level.
Whether the more experienced Parker can stay out of harm’s way and use his speed to hit and not get hit against the Congolese heavyweight remains to be seen.
But on paper, at least, Parker just might have stepped from one fire in Dubois into another roaring one in Bakole.
Watch The Last Crescendo card live on DAZN PPV
Watch the full Last Crescendo fight card, including Beterbiev vs Bivol and Parker vs Bakole, live on DAZN Pay-Per-View.
The PPV is available to buy now at £19.99 in UK and $25.99 in US.
Buying the DAZN PPV offers a range of extra benefits. including alternative commentary options with Adam Smith or True Geordie or Showbizz the Adult ; local language commentary; entry to a prize draw for tickets to Chris Eubank Jr. vs Connor Benn* (for UK only); and a seven-day free trial of the full DAZN platform.
Watch the fight night anywhere with DAZN via smart TV's, smartphones, tablets, games consoles, streaming devices and PC's / laptops.
For PPV costs in your country and to buy now, click here .
*UK only. Restrictions apply. See T&Cs on help.dazn.com. Full T&C's here
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