Former WBO cruiserweight champion Lawrence Okolie has landed a title shot against WBC bridgerweight champion Lukasz Rozanski for the WBC bridgerweight title in a move that was speculated several weeks before, but now finds his career virtually stalled as he aims to become a world champion in an unestablished division that has yet to be widely recognized by the majority of boxing institutions. Okolie and Rozanski have been confirmed to meet in the ring on May 24th in Rozanski’s home country of Poland at the Hala na Podpromius stadium in Rzeszow―Rozanski’s place of birth and hometown.
As a former WBO cruiserweight champion, Lawrence Okolie (19-1, 14 KO’s) had multiple options lying ahead of him with most prominently an opportunity lying in wait for Okolie to face the winner of current WBO cruiserweight champion Chris Billam-Smith (19-1, 13 KO’s) and challenger Richard Riakporhe (17-0, 13 KO’s)―who are expected to face each other in the near future.
All three of the British cruiserweights are signed to the same promotional outfit of Boxxer, and with Okolie having a history with both fighters, it would be far from unfeasible to see Okolie matched up with the winner of Billam-Smith-Riakporhe when taken into account his standing as a former word champion with four title defenses on his record.
In fact, in regards to both fighter, there is still a sense of unfinished business with Okolie’s loss to Chris Billam-Smith last year suggesting the former champion was either not mentally or physically at his best, which would warrant a rematch.
Between Okolie and Riakporhe, aside from them being regarded as part of a trinity of British cruiserweights―which includes Billam-Smith―that are expected to carve out a career in the division as world champions or top contenders, they have had noticeable public spats which only heated up their rivalry, and gave rise to the notion they would face each other in the near future to stage an intriguing match-up between two top domestic rivals.
However, it now appears that Lawrence Okolie has now decided to take the easier route towards a world title, having opted to fight WBC bridgerweight/super cruiserweight champion Lukasz Rozanski (15-0, 14 KO’s) next rather than aiming for a comeback match at cruiserweight to set up a potential bout against the future winner of Billam-Smith-Riakporhe.
Though Rozanski is firmly positioned as a champion, the bridgerweight division is not officially recognized widely and has thus far only been approved and sanctioned by the WBA and WBC, making any bridgerweight champion less established and reputable than a world champion of any other officially recognized weight class.
This is further characterized by the fact none of the former or current bridgerweight champions have done anything substantial prior or after becoming world champions in the division. While Oscar Rivas (28-1, 19 KO’s) became the first-ever WBC bridgerweight champion in 2021 following his victory over Canadian Ryan Rozicki (20-1, 19 KO’s), the Colombian fighter has not had a single match since which eventually resulted in the WBC bridgerweight belt becoming vacant and ending in the hands of Rozanski.
Prior to his title victory at bridgerweight, Rivas’ most noteworthy rematch was a close unanimous decision (UD) loss to British heavyweight Dillian Whyte (30-3, 20 KO’s) in which he showed glimpses of his potential, but the Colombian opted to take his talents to the bridgerweight division which eventually resulted in him remaining inactive for almost three years.
Polish heavyweight Lukasz Rozanski had no notable career prior to participating at bridgerweight despite his undefeated record, and his best and most well-known win so far remains a victory over the then-undefeated Croatian heavyweight Alen Babic (11-1, 10 KO’s) last year in a match where the [vacant] WBC bridgerweight title was fought over.
With age not on 38-year old Rozanski’s side, as well as a lack of experience compared to the 31-year old Okolie, there is a huge opportunity for the former British cruiserweight to become a world champion again despite coming off of a loss to Chris Billam-Smith. However, given the standing of the relatively unestablished bridgerweight division, the victory itself does not signal any significant achievement for Lawrence Okolie.
Even more disappointedly, Lawrence Okolie seems to have been heavily misinformed regarding the importance of the WBC bridgerweight title following a recent interview where he appeared jubilated at the opportunity to face Rozanski for his belt.
“At this point it would mean everything,” Okolie told Sky Sports.
“Winning and losing a world title, I can see the difference so I want it and I want it bad. I’ve got to prove a lot of people wrong, not that it’s my main motivation but it does give you a chip on your shoulder.
“Even the other team, for them to make this fight and they’re probably feeling really confident, I have to show them too. I’ve got to remind a lot of people what I’ve done and what I’m capable of and what I’ve got left in the tank.“
Major concerns have now risen due to Okolie’s notion that his upcoming May 24th match with Rozanski is anything but a stepping stone―which it barely is given the winner will not be rated higher at either cruiserweight or heavyweight, the two divisions that the bridgerweight division was created to form a bridge between.
While the world title bout against Lukasz Rozanski can make Lawrence Okolie a world champion again, his standing will only increase in the bridgerweight division―which again, does not mean Okolie will suddenly be considered a top cruiserweight or heavyweight contender.
As a means to ward off the effects of ring rust and look ahead at aiming for either a return at cruiserweight or a run at heavyweight, the match does present an opportunity for Lawrence Okolie if his course is to enter any of the two aforementioned weight classes in a possible run to become a genuine world champion again―a feat that he has already shown to have accomplished and is young enough to achieve again.
