Lawrence Okolie wants next IBF champion Mairis Briedis



[ad_1]

The cruiserweight wants to add to his WBO belt.

Lawrence Okolie went from his victory over Krzysztof Glowacki to target a unification fight with fellow champion Mairis Breidis.

Okolie won the vacant WBO Cruiserweight title against his Polish rival on Saturday night in his 16th bout, 13 of which were won by knockout. A huge closing punch from the 28-year-old Briton was enough to end this fight impressively.

Speaking after the fight, Okolie couldn’t believe his victory.

“I don’t think it’s entered yet,” he said.

“It’s nice to hear you say that. I am happy. For me, it’s more of a relief. The potential has been around for over a year. I am happy to take the victory. Now and forever, I will be a world champion.

“I was really focused on putting in a good performance. I’m very strong physically and I hit hard. I’m very fit so I can win on those attributes alone at a certain level. I really focused on don’t throw any shots because he’s very dangerous with the kickbacks and he’s very muscular. His jabs were very solid so I had to be very meticulous to keep the distance. It was a good clean performance.

“All the former British world champions who wished me good luck really touched me – shout at them. From every run I have ever done, lose all that weight, decide to take a risk, have my parents support me financially when I couldn’t I can’t afford the bus to the gym to train me. Seeing it all pay off with a world title is a dream come true – never give up. We can just continue from here. I have to keep pushing myself to prove myself as the best. “

Latvian fighter Briedis is the current IBF world champion at cruiserweight, and Okolie believes the duo could fight.

“I feel like I would like to fight someone like Briedis next,” Okolie said. “I think among the champions Briedis is the one I would like to play the most with.

“It would be unified in 17 fights and 42 career fights. Obviously, any champion Eddie [Hearn] can get it, but the one I would be looking for is Briedis. “

[ad_2]
Source link