Lawrence Okolie vs Michal Cieslak

Lawrence Okolie will be looking to make a second successful defence of his WBO cruiserweight world title when he takes on Michal Cieslak this weekend.

‘The Sauce’ beat Krzysztof Glowacki to claim the belt in March 2021 and then defended it against Dilan Prasovic last September.

Okolie took out Prasovic inside three rounds in an impressive display but 21 and one Polish fighter Cieslak promises to provide a sterner test.

Meanwhile, Galal Yafai, who won boxing gold for Team GB at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, will make his professional debut and Campbell Hatton, son of legend Ricky, will also be under the lights.

The O2 Arena is set to host the action despite being partially damaged by Storm Eunice last week.

The 12-round cruiserweight title bout is set to take place on Sunday, February 27 at The O2 Arena in London.

https://talksport.com/wp-content/upl...60&quality=100

The undercard action will begin at 5pm with the Okolie vs Cieslak ring-walks set for around 10pm.

The fight will be shown on DAZN in the UK with their extended coverage starting from 3pm – the streaming service costs £7.99 per month, you can sign up HERE.

It can be streamed via the DAZN app and can be viewed on smart TVs, game consoles, connected devices, mobile, tablets and computers.

Lawrence Okolie v Michal Cieslak – for WBO cruiserweight title
Galal Yafai v Carlos Vado Bautista – for vacant WBC international flyweight title
Campbell Hatton v Joe Ducker
Karim Guerfi v Jordan Gill – for EBU European featherweight title
Anthony Fowler v Lukasz Maciec
Fabio Wardley v Daniel Martz
Demsey McKean v Ariel Esteban Bracamonte
Cheavon Clarke v Toni Visic
John Hedges v Aleksander Nagolski

Lawrence Okolie: “I believe on paper this could be one of the hardest fights. Until you actually get in the ring, you never know what someone’s got.

“Watching Cieslak’s fights, he’s a very good technical boxer. He’s got some power and good speed. All in all, it poses to be a very good challenging fight.

“I believe I’m going to go on to unify the division. One of the main things that we focus on and try to keep fit is mindset.

“So I’m making sure that we practice the mind, practice the body, put yourself in interesting situations and hold yourself accountable. I’m ready for this. This is a stage that I was made for. This is a fight I was made for.

“As soon as a fight is made, Cieslak is the only thing I think of. I’ve got a picture of him in my room. I watched all of his interviews. I don’t understand any of them but I like to watch his mannerisms. I’ve watched all of his fights. I know him and that’s what I focus on.”

Michal Cieslak: “It’s surely a big fight for Polish boxing. I can’t wait to actually attend the fight. I’m training very hard, and I can’t wait to fight.

“If I wasn’t sure I was going to win, I wouldn’t be here, I’ve been training since I was 13 so I’m ready to get the WBO title.”

https://talksport.com/sport/boxing/1...mpbell-hatton/

i think this is lawrence's toughest opponent to date

What a KO by Gill.. out of absolutely nowhere.

As for Okolie, meh. His style is one of the worst to watch.

Even though he wins I just cannot take to him.

Galal Yafai Debut!

He is winning fairly easily but he is wide open and still getting hit.

Good solid debut by Yafai. Got caught a bit too easily once or twice but nit picking really as he was in control for every round. Good stoppage by the opposite corner, no point their man taking round after round of one way traffic and progessively heavier punishment. Will be fun to follow his progress.

Once again an Okolie mess of a fight.

How does he get to headline shows? His fights are always shit shows.

Well the reff is earning his fee tonight (:

Messier than Anne Widecombe trying to put a condom on a sock full of custard.

Missed most of the fight but Okolie won round 10.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Master

Missed most of the fight but Okolie won round 10.

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Okolie has won most of the rounds but made it so hard for himself and to call it messy is an understatement.

Okolie gets UD. Messy fight but he is the best in the division.

I think the least said about the Okolie fight the better. Watching him fight is like watching a spider try to climb back up through the plug hole.

The Jordan Gill fight was just about the most bonkers thing you could see. I switched it on during a replay of the DDT. The look in Gills eyes, I assumed I was watching a repeat of the end of the fight. He looked hurt and got wobbled multiple times after that to the point that I expected the towel several times. Pulls out a one hit finish that wasn't quite as chilling as Jackson Graham but it was every bit as dramatic. He then, post fight, appears to be hurt again and starts stumbling about. I think I heard him mutter "I didn't quit" before being told to take a stool. He suffered a double eardrum perforation apparently. Incredibly dramatic. Incredibly brave from Gill.

Yafai took a few hits but I think he was always comfortable. Looked assured, well schooled. Great output for a debut given that it was scheduled for ten. I know it's a debut and I know shit happens and you have replacements. But if crafting a boxer. A debut needs to be very much Galal Yafai and not Frazer Clarke.

Glad Eddie and DAZN did not clash with the Josh Taylor fight on Saturday as he has a habit of doing that.

This looked like a small event and was on Fox Sports in USA. I wonder how DAZN are doing and does Eddie regret leaving Sky?

The highlights don't really do this justice. Watch Gill from the DDT onwards. Gill was all over the shop. This is right up there with Williams Potter, Thompson Rothmaan or any other British victory from the jaws of defeat job. Initially I thought Gill dropped to his knees post fight. But the fucker just plain keeled over.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2R_alRyMMKw

Quote:

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Originally Posted by Memphis

The highlights don't really do this justice. Watch Gill from the DDT onwards. Gill was all over the shop. This is right up there with Williams Potter, Thompson Rothmaan or any other British victory from the jaws of defeat job. Initially I thought Gill dropped to his knees post fight. But the fucker just plain keeled over.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2R_alRyMMKw

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Thanks for that. I tuned in on the night just after this one and now can see that for once there was no hyperbole from the ringside team when they were talking about Gill's remarkable last ditch KO.