Okolie moves to heavyweight

[KiwiRider]

He’s on the December 7th Frankie boy show !! Thought he was with Sky / Boxxer ?

He's gone to FW

Not a bad opponent? I mean good record anyway!

https://boxrec.com/en/box-pro/707814

Ah, delve a little deeper and you find he got knocked out in 3 the first time he stopped squashing tomatoes.

[JamesPhilips]

He's gone to FW

Not a bad opponent? I mean good record anyway!

https://boxrec.com/en/box-pro/707814

Ah, delve a little deeper and you find he got knocked out in 3 the first time he stopped squashing tomatoes.

We don’t have to delve deep! Kossubutsy is decent. But as I said ‘good record’ as in on paper… but he has a couple of half decent wins. Senad Gashi (later NC) and a couple of somewhat decent fighters.

But in perspective it’s Okolie’s first fight at heavyweight and the opponent is 6ft5 and 260lbs with some power.
It’s a very reasonable first fight at heavyweight.

[KiwiRider]

Not a bad opponent? I mean good record anyway!

https://boxrec.com/en/box-pro/707814

Ah, delve a little deeper and you find he got knocked out in 3 the first time he stopped squashing tomatoes.

We don’t have to delve deep! Kossubutsy is decent. But as I said ‘good record’ as in on paper… but he has a couple of half decent wins. Senad Gashi (later NC) and a couple of somewhat decent fighters.

But in perspective it’s Okolie’s first fight at heavyweight and the opponent is 6ft5 and 260lbs with some power.
It’s a very reasonable first fight at heavyweight.

Maybe my expectations are a little high, but I would expect a former (recent) cruiser world champion to aim further up the order. Never mind, me. As long as he is active in building his career as a HW, it's all good. I can't help remembering CBS battering him and thinking CBS probably doesn't hit as hard as the heavies
Good luck to him anyway

[joshj909]

Ah, delve a little deeper and you find he got knocked out in 3 the first time he stopped squashing tomatoes.

We don’t have to delve deep! Kossubutsy is decent. But as I said ‘good record’ as in on paper… but he has a couple of half decent wins. Senad Gashi (later NC) and a couple of somewhat decent fighters.

But in perspective it’s Okolie’s first fight at heavyweight and the opponent is 6ft5 and 260lbs with some power.
It’s a very reasonable first fight at heavyweight.

Maybe my expectations are a little high, but I would expect a former (recent) cruiser world champion to aim further up the order. Never mind, me. As long as he is active in building his career as a HW, it's all good. I can't help remembering CBS battering him and thinking CBS probably doesn't hit as hard as the heavies
Good luck to him anyway

Okolie: Muhamed
Gassiev: Seferi
Usyk: Witherspoon
Huck: Saglam
Haye: Barrett
Adamek: Golota
Cunningham: Gavern
Jones Jr: Ruiz
Toney: Holyfield
Nelson: Vasiliev
Holyfield: Tillis

Some standouts but generally they're not top opponents straight away. Even for the top guys.

My problem isn't necessarily with the opponent, it's that he's talking a lot for someone who has that opponent.

[johninmanchester]

Bit of a weird signing, HW or not. He's box office poison and unwatchable on TV. His style won't change in the slightest and he can't sell a ticket. Not really sure why Warren has picked him up.

[knockout]

Bit of a weird signing, HW or not. He's box office poison and unwatchable on TV. His style won't change in the slightest and he can't sell a ticket. Not really sure why Warren has picked him up.

Yes I think we are all thinking that :)

[Ruthless-RKO]

[JamesPhilips]

Bit of a weird signing, HW or not. He's box office poison and unwatchable on TV. His style won't change in the slightest and he can't sell a ticket. Not really sure why Warren has picked him up.

Yes I think we are all thinking that :)

There’s always money in the heavyweights. I mean you’re just one win away from big money. Even Hughie Fury would sell against the right opponent. If okolie scores a big win impressively, and he can punch when he wants to, he can be sold.

We also have to remember that Okolie is a rap star so has clout in the hip hop world



Having said that he’s never gonna be PPV gold.

[Controversial]

I was listening to a podcast yesterday and Sam Jones and Spencer Oliver both saying how naturally big Okolie is and he had to boil himself down to make CW and it affected his chin and power, they both think he will be a force at HW. Personally I can’t see it if he continues with the safety first approach, maybe if he comes in at 17+ stone and gets more offensive he might be a different fighter.

[ordsalloriginator]

Bit of a weird signing, HW or not. He's box office poison and unwatchable on TV. His style won't change in the slightest and he can't sell a ticket. Not really sure why Warren has picked him up.

Yeah but I think Warren is trying to really be the main promoter at heavyweight.

He has lots of heavyweights! >> Tyson Fury, Daniel Dubois, Zhilei Zhang, Joseph Parker, Fabio Wardley, Dereck Chisora, Joe Joyce, Moses Itauma, Vladyslav Sirenko, Solomon Dacres, David Adeleye, Boma Brown, Lewis Williams

[johninmanchester]

Maybe he's taking him even just as an FU to boxxer, deprive them of another name.

Signs are that Frazer Clarke is headed over there as well.

[SeanBrennan]

Street fighter.

I Didn’t like him

he had good reach

He was slower than Joe Joyce though.

good point, He was no E-Honda

[keithmoonhangover]

Bit of a weird signing, HW or not. He's box office poison and unwatchable on TV. His style won't change in the slightest and he can't sell a ticket. Not really sure why Warren has picked him up.

If you don't know the answer to the question, the answer is almost certainly.... money.

[cormack]

Bit of a weird signing, HW or not. He's box office poison and unwatchable on TV. His style won't change in the slightest and he can't sell a ticket. Not really sure why Warren has picked him up.

If you don't know the answer to the question, the answer is almost certainly.... money.

yes no doubt he will end up on one of the saudi cards - turki probably match him with some odd choice that he thinks is good

[Controversial]

WTF, Okolie weighed in at 260.8lbs today (18 stone 9lbs)

[chinarich]

Why the extra weight? Was he not slow enough already?

[knockout]

WTF, Okolie weighed in at 260.8lbs today (18 stone 9lbs)

Got a belly on him ! Didn’t he used to be quite heavy before he started boxing ?

[Oiky]

Okolie one of them you're always better off not wasting your time watching, put kettle on or make a bit of grub.

[Controversial]

By all accounts he really struggled to make CW and would walk around at 17+ stone, I’ve heard people say he is huge when out of training and making weight affected his performances so maybe he will be a bit more suited to the HW division, slower and more unfit opponents than at CW. He doesn’t look in great shape at almost 19 stone though, probably can do with losing a couple of stone.

[keithmoonhangover]

WTF, Okolie weighed in at 260.8lbs today (18 stone 9lbs)

Got a belly on him ! Didn’t he used to be quite heavy before he started boxing ?

According to some of the Fury fans, that's the perfect physique for boxing.

[a force]

If we assume he boiled down to the cruiser limit & came into the ring between 215 & 220 that’s still a 3 stone jump in weight. Crazy.

I know the general view is that he’s dull to watch which I agree with for the most part I did think he was gradually clinching less when he was with Shane McGuigan & he was exciting in his bridgerweight fight.

[funso banjo baby]

WTF, Okolie weighed in at 260.8lbs today (18 stone 9lbs)

Wtf !!!!

[Twinkle Toes]

The weighin is on youtube, he looks out of shape.

It was a long held view from most that he was notorious for balooning in weight out of camp.

[keithmoonhangover]

The weighin is on youtube, he looks out of shape.

It was a long held view from most that he was notorious for balooning in weight out of camp.

The guy he's fighting is a complete turnip, so it won't be an issue.

[JC]

The weighin is on youtube, he looks out of shape.

It was a long held view from most that he was notorious for balooning in weight out of camp.

The guy he's fighting is a complete turnip, so it won't be an issue.

not a great sign for the future though.