Eddie Hearn Clarifies Anthony Joshua's And Martin Bakole's Intense Sparring Session

Bakole's claims of boxing dominance stir discussions in heavyweight boxing

Martin Bakole has sparked discussions with his accounts of past sparring sessions with heavyweight champions /

By Mohamed Bahaa

Rising heavyweight champion Martin Bakole has attracted interest not just for his recent successes but also for his account of rigorous sparring sessions with some of the most well-known sportsmen. With a stunning fifth-round stoppage, Bakole, 31, recently delivered a career-defining performance that stopped American heavyweight prospect Jared Anderson's ascent.

Bakole has frequently expressed frustration at being passed over by elite boxers, attributing their resistance to his training performance. Declaring that many heavyweight elites avoid signing contracts to face him due of the harm he has inflicted in sparring, he has said he is "the most avoided man on the planet."

Bakole proudly claimed that he defeated multiple elite boxers behind closed doors. "Ask anyone about me," Bakole challenged. "Go ask Daniel Dubois about me, ask Joshua about me, ask Usyk about me, ask Tyson Fury about me, they will keep quiet. Nobody will say they gave me a hard time. I gave them all a hard time. I stopped Daniel Dubois twice, stopped Joe Joyce and Joshua oh, that was a big one, he was hurt that day."

Promoter of Anthony Joshua, Eddie Hearn verified Bakole's sparring sessions with Joshua in a previous interview. Hearn called the exchanges "wars," implying that the sessions were significantly more competitive than Bakole may have implied. "I think he's had some great spars. I've seen him spar AJ. Wars. I don’t know, he dropped Usyk did he? Or he dropped Dubois or whatever? I’m sure he’s capable of dropping anyone … Sometimes you go into a spar, you get hurt, maybe you’re not switched on, maybe you’ve got a little niggle. It’s boxing," Hearn said.

Bakole is rising in the heavyweight ranks, but he is sure that their prior gym interactions will never allow a battle with Joshua to take place. Starting with his forthcoming fight against Daniel Dubois, Bakole is eager to keep climbing as Joshua works on recovering the heavyweight championship; fans have expressed interest in a possible clash between Chinese southpaw Zhilei Zhang—a matchup that has already been approved of Riyadh Season's Turki Al Sheikh.

Now that Bakole's name is regularly cited among the heavyweight elite, the stories of his sparring sessions further heighten the mystery about his future moves in the division.