Martin Bakole outboxes Sergey Kuzmin over ten!
Both Martin Bakole and Sergey Kuzmin want nothing more to get revenge for losing their “O’s” to top 10 rated heavyweight Michael Hunter. Bakole retired in the tenth round of an entertaining fight due to a shoulder injury in 2018. A year later, Kuzmin was outboxed for twelve rounds to drop a decision to Hunter.
The two meet not only to crack the top fifteen rankings but to put the spotlight back on their careers. Kuzmin, born and raised in Russia, enjoyed an extensive amateur career. There he defeated names like Joe Joyce and Roberto Cammarelle. Bakole, the African from the Congo residing in the UK, did not have much of an amateur career but is known for his toughness and punching power in both hands.
AMATEUR EXPERIENCE MATTERS…RIGHT?
To the average fan, simple study of the background of both men may have resulted in the opinion that Kuzmin may dominate early. The fact that he fought about 250 amateur bouts compared to Bakole’s 17 would mean the Russian should easily have the edge right?
Wrong!
In most match-ups at a lower level of competition, this would be the case. However, the constant sparring against top level heavyweights like Anthony Joshua, Bakole has involved himself in has helped him with “learning on the job.” Plus Kuzmin looked extremely unhealthy and overweight for this fight.
This actually was a decent chess match. Bakole did a good job of mixing up his attack but may have inadvertently given his opponent chances. At times he did a lot of waiting while utilizing his range behind the jab, not allowing his opponent to get comfortable. In other rounds, he brought relentless pressure, putting Kuzmin on his back-foot.
While this strategy kept the Russian adjusting, Bakole’s aggression allowed Kuzmin to score on some big shots at mid-range distance. Throughout this fight, the British fighter seemed to be fresher with more volume. However, it was Kuzmin that landed the bigger shots, each one being well timed.
If Bakole had the chin of former Olympic gold medalist Audley Harrison, he may have been stopped early! Conversely, having a chin of stone allowed him to eat a big shot in order to return several. Furthermore whenever the African went back to attacking behind a jab and keeping his distance, Kuzmin had no answer for this.
HOW TO JUDGE THIS FIGHT
Judgement of this fight was really about how one prioritizes what they are seeing. Some may have given Kuzmin more rounds than others simply because he clearly landed the bigger shots throughout the fight. However, when looking at the four criteria of judging over ten rounds, Bakole had the edge.
Although the African ate some big shots, he landed more punches in general. This could generate into him having a better defense since his offense kept Kuzmin reseting. He dictated the pace in more rounds behind his jab. He had the more effective aggression which led to his opponent being on his back-foot much more than him. The last category, punch accuracy, would have to go to Kuzmin.
In the end, 3kingsboxing.com scored this fight 97-93 for Bakole. Officially, the judges had the same winner with the scores of 98-92, 97-93 and 96-94.
In a previous interview, Hunter mentioned if Bakole wins he would allow the rematch to be in Africa! Let’s see what happens.
By: EJ Williams
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