Lawrence Okolie made a successful heavyweight debut last Saturday night by knocking out Hussein Muhamed inside one round.
Okolie showed that he has the power and frame to be successful at the higher weight, and he told TalkSport that he is hoping that he won’t have to wait too long before being given the opportunity to add a heavyweight title to his cruiserweight and bridgerweight belts.
“What I’m hearing, obviously, I think, with this win, with the stable that they’ve got at Queensbury and the way that he’s maneuvering people, they’re pushing towards trying to get me well title opportunities as soon as possible in 2025, so that’s what I’m looking for,” said Okolie, 21-1 (16 KOs).
Some fighters feel their way into life at heavyweight, finding a weight they are comfortable with and getting used to the pace and physicality of fighting naturally bigger men, but Okolie is a big man himself and has spent his boxing life mixing with top-tier heavyweights.
Rather than taking time to build himself up, Okolie is finally able to concentrate on fighting without having to worry about boiling his 6ft 5ins frame down to an unnatural weight. He can now box at a pace that suits him without worrying about depleting his gas tank and making himself vulnerable.
Okolie, 31, says that his previous experience means that he is ready to begin mixing with big names straight away.
“I believe so,” he said. “I think I’ve been a world champion for a number of years, and that’s the kind of level that I want to operate at no matter what weight class I’m in.
“From before I even qualified for the Olympics, I’ve been in there with all of the best heavyweights. Albeit, sparring is sparring, it’s like you’re talking Anthony Joshua, Tyson Fury, Dan Dubois, Joe Joyce – and I’m talking hundreds of rounds, because they’re the ones that are more competitive in sparring than cruiserweights at the time.
“So I’ve been in and around the heavyweight scene for a while and there’s there’s not much of a difference other than size in terms of skill, so I’m ready to start.”
Okolie may have mixed with the great and the good of the modern heavyweight division, but he has been most impressed by another fighter who is relatively new to the scene.
Okolie may now find himself in a footrace towards a title belt with his roster mate, 19-year-old Moses Itauma. He already has first-hand experience of just how talented the youngster is.
“I still need to wonder if it’s because I was making cruiser or not, but there’s a a young guy up and coming called Moses Itauma. I remember sparring him when he was 15, 16 and I was preparing for a world title shot,” he said.
“I can’t tell you what it was about him, but it was just he was so fast and explosive, and then he was also very skilful and, to be fair, that’s probably the hardest spars that I had, full stop.
“I was 27, so I was literally geared up in the best shape, ready for this world title shot and then this boy’s come in his school uniform, taking off his little tie and his blazer and coming to give great work.
“That’s why I’m really rooting for him, because I want to see someone who has that talent actually go and accomplish great things.”
John Evans has contributed to a number of well-known publications and websites for over a decade. You can follow John on X @John_Evans79.
