While a mega-fight between Oleksandr Usyk and Daniel Dubois for all four world heavyweight titles is in the offing, many boxing fans in Germany are asking themselves one question in particular: What’s next for Agit Kabayel?
The answer: in all likelihood against Lawrence Okolie, the former cruiserweight champion and current WBC number 1 challenger in the heavyweight division. According to information from Queensberry Promotions, whose squad includes both Agit Kabayel and Okolie, a title duel is planned for the summer, possibly even in Germany. “In view of Kabayel’s ranking and the situation surrounding Usyk-Dubois, a fight against Okolie is the logical consequence. The winner would be the first contender for the WBC title if Usyk were to relinquish it,” say promoters.
Such a duel would be of great sporting and strategic importance. Kabayel could not only continue to assert himself on the big stage, but also take the next step towards becoming WBC world champion – depending on how long Usyk holds or is allowed to keep his belt.
The 32-year-old has finally arrived at the top of the world rankings since February at the latest: With a spectacular knockout against Zhilei Zhang, the man from Bochum was crowned interim WBC world champion – an achievement that made waves internationally. He had previously caused a stir with victories over Frank Sanchez and Arslanbek Makhmudov.
“We have to be at the start”
Kabayel is currently the fourth-best heavyweight in the world after Usyk, Dubois and Parker. Nevertheless, the German will have to be patient, as the world champions of the other federations are currently busy planning a unification fight. “I don’t think I’ll be fighting Usyk next. My feeling is that he’ll do something else first. But we have to be in the pipeline, we have to be at the start. Someone could drop out at any time – and then we’re right in the middle of it,” the Bochum native told sport.de.
It is precisely this “being in the pipeline” that now seems to be the case: a fight against Okolie would not only be a sporting highlight, but would also give the winner an excellent starting position for a possible WBC full title – should Usyk resign his titles after the Dubois rematch, which is currently considered a realistic option.
Text by Robin Josten