Heavyweight contenders Martin Bakole and Agit Kabayel are heading into arguably the biggest fight of their careers after the IBF, who had ordered the two face each other, has now arranged for a purse bid ceremony, set for November 5, setting the stage for a match between the two to be arranged for early 2025. However, with Boxxer, Bakole’s promoter, having defined itself by developing a keen reputation for their fighters withdrawing from purse bids, there are doubts as to whether this fight will actually occur.
Based on the IBF’s recent decision to schedule a purse bid for November 5, a significant fight in the heavyweight (200+ lbs) division appears to be looming ever closer. British promotion Boxxer, who represents Congolese heavyweight Martin Bakole (21-1, 16 KO’s), will be going up against the less prevalent Germany-based Sports Event Steinforth (SES)―also known as SES Boxing― in the upcoming purse bid hearing. SES currently represents Agit Kabayel (25-0, 17 KO’s) as a promotion.
Though the purse bid has already been scheduled, the deadline for negotiations has apparently not and the two teams are still allowed to engage in negotiations until the November 5 purse bid hearing.
The news of the IBF’s upcoming purse bids carries a grim tone given Boxxer’s history of its fighters pulling out of these proceedings at the last moment. The latest incident culminated in former cruiserweight (200 lbs) world champion, Lawrence Okolie (20-1, 15 KO’s), pulling out of a scheduled purse bid to face South African fighter Kevin Lerena (30-3, 14 KO’s)―in what was a WBC-ordered fight for Okolie to defend his WBC bridgerweight title. This conspiciously occurred the same day a purse bid hearing between the two teams was held.
That incident further cemented Boxxer as a problematic promotion when it comes to purse bids, especially considering the Okolie-Lerena mandated fight underwent several postponements of its purse bid ceremony only for Okolie to become the latest in a long line of Boxxer fighters to withdraw from a purse bid.
As such, there is little to suggest the recent purse bid hearing for Bakole and Kabayel will even commence ―with the current expectation linking Bakole to a likely withdrawal come November 5 unless a deal between Boxxer and SES is reached prior.
Bakole, 32, has had some notable wins throughout his career, exemplified through a close majority decision (MD) victory over French Olympic gold medalist Tony Yoka (13-3, 11 KO’s) in 2022, becoming the first fighter to beat the Frenchman in the professional ranks. In 2023, Martin Bakole stopped another French heavyweight in veteran Carlos Takam to signify the threat he posed in the 200+ lbs division.
However, it was Bakole’s most recent victory on August 3 over young American contender Jared Anderson (17-1, 15 KO’s) that truly distinguished him as a dangerous heavyweight that might have the potential to be a world champion in the future.
That opportunity might come quicker than realized depending on how Bakole faces off against another budding heavyweight contender: German fighter Agit Kabayel.
Like Martin Bakole, Kabayel has floated around the top 15 for several years and has some prevalent victories he can count on his resume. Roughly 7 years ago, Kabayel did well to defeat a younger Derek Chisora (35-13, 23 KO’s) in 2017 by MD―a surprise given Chisora had then been aligned with Matchroom at the time, who was organized the show the two headlined on, and had been the favorite going into the match.
However, it would be almost a decade later until Kabayel defined himself as a genuine top 10 heavyweight after defeating Russian contender Aslanbek Makhmudov (19-2, 18 KO’s) in December of 2023, only to surprise again when he defeated a more prevalent heavyweight in Cuban contender Frank Sanchez (24-1, 17 KO’s) in May of this year.
Adding to Kabayel’s impressive victories is the fact that he handed both aforementioned heavyweights their first defeats, setting himself apart as a potential “dark horse” in the heavyweight division that can continue the trend of upsets he caused to potentially earn a world title for himself.
The stage appears set for one of the heavyweight division’s most momentous fights where either Bakole or Kabayel will be heralded as a surefire contender for a world title. Only Boxxer’s history in purse bids might might prevent this fight from occurring entirely, and with one of its previous fighters in Okolie having withdrawn from a purse bid just this month, the boxing world will be waiting with heavy anticipation on what will occur on November 5.
