Martin Bakole will stop Deontay Wilder, he’s far too skilful for him, declares trainer Billy Nelson
Martin Bakole’s trainer, Billy Nelson, issued a bold challenge to former heavyweight champion Deontay Wilder; as negotiations continue to stall for the proposed WBC final eliminator between Wilder and Andy Ruiz Jr, Nelson firmly believes Wilder should set his sights on Bakole instead
Martin Bakole would not hesitate to fight Deontay Wilder to set up a heavyweight title bout, says trainer Billy Nelson.
Bakole believes he is ready to take on the ‘Bronze Bomber’ Deontay Wilder in the near future.
“There’s absolutely no hesitation, if Andy Ruiz and Wilder doesn’t get made, for Martin to fight Wilder,” Nelson told Sky Sports.
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“Wilder says he wants to fight the best. Well, let’s get No 1 and No 2 in the WBA [rankings]. Get that on in America on a pay-per-view card, and the winner moves on to a world title fight.”
It’s a fight that would be explosive. Both possess devastating knockout power and have demonstrated that throughout their careers.
Nelson, never one to shy away from supporting his fighter, oozed confidence when it came to Bakole’s chances against the former champion.
“Martin will stop Deontay Wilder,” he said. “He’s far too skilful for him and will eventually get to him.”
Since suffering his only career defeat to US Olympian Michael Hunter in 2018, Bakole, has been steadily climbing the ranks, winning his eight subsequent fights.
He has extended his record to 19-1, with 14 wins via knockout after a third round stoppage of Ihor Shevadzutskyi in April.
Wilder though is no stranger to destructive endings. The 46-fight veteran has amassed 42 stoppages from his 43 wins, making him one of the most feared fighters in the world of boxing.
Wilder is looking to stay active since suffering back-to-back losses to WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, hoping to implement more of what he has been learning from new head trainer Malik Scott.
Scott’s first fight in Wilder’s corner came in the third bout with Fury, and the second was his last outing in October when viciously knocking out Robert Helenius in the first round.
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A potential matchup between Bakole and Wilder could happen sooner rather than later. With both men holding the top two spots in the WBA rankings, a fight could give us the next challenger to the winner of Oleksandr Usyk vs Daniel Dubois, which takes place next month.
The WBC has also instructed Wilder to box fellow former champion Andy Ruiz in an eliminator for the title that Fury holds.
However Wilder and Ruiz are yet to reach an agreement to make that fight, and Bakole is eager to step in himself.
After his last fight Bakole declared: “I want Dillian Whyte, Daniel Dubois, Oleksandr Usyk. Why not Usyk? Why not Deontay Wilder? I call people out because I know I can stop them!”
BOXXER promoter Ben Shalom added: “Bakole is so good, fighters don’t want to fight him. Everyone in boxing knows how good he is so we have to make sure he gets his mandatories and people can’t avoid him.
“Martin has pedigree, he is ready for the big fights. For me, Wilder is the fight he should be getting next.”
