Lawrence Okolie is all set for his heavyweight boxing debut on Saturday evening, when he faces Hussein Muhamed in front of a home crowd.
The 31-year-old from Hackney kicked off his boxing career at cruiserweight back in 2017, besting Geoffrey Cave via a first found KO before embarking on a 19-fight unbeaten streak in the division. The highlight of his career to date would undoubtedly be lifting the WBO cruiserweight title in 2021, courtesy of a sixth-round TKO over Krzysztof Glowacki – a belt he defended three times before he was ultimately bested by Chirs Billam-Smith last year via majority decision.
After claiming the bridgerweight title with a first-round knockout of Lukasz Rosanski in May, Okolie is set to step up another weight class to the world of heavyweight – with hopes of bolstering his budding 20-1 record further. However, he will be given a warm welcome to the division by 18-1 Muhamed at the OVO Arena in Wembley – who is fresh off the back of a UD victory over Ali Kiydin.
The two will meet on the undercard of Brad Pauls’ main event against Denzel Bentley, with the 19-1-1 ‘Newquay Bomb’ hoping to defend his British middleweight title against a hungry 20-3-1 foe. As we anticipate an evening jam-packed with action, the Daily Record provides a comprehensive breakdown of everything you need to know – from ring walk timings to how viewers can watch from home…
What time does Lawrence Okolie vs Hussein Muhamed start in the UK?
The event headed by Pauls and Bentley kicks off at 6pm in the UK, with a thrilling undercard set to take place ahead of the featured bout of the evening. George Crotty and Dylan Courtney kick off the action at light heavyweight, while Aloys Youmbi goes toe-to-toe with Lewis Oakford at cruiserweight elsewhere.
Okolie and Muhamed are set to take to the ring at around 9pm. As always, the timings are subject to change dependent on how long it takes for the undercard to progress, and the bout could come sooner or later than anticipated.
How to watch the fight
TNT Sports has the broadcast rights for the bout in the UK, while US audiences can catch the action live and direct on DAZN. Alternatively, those who want to see the ‘Magnificent Seven’ action live in the flesh can still purchase tickets from AXS – with prices starting at £59.25.
The full fight card
- Brad Pauls vs Denzel Bentley for the British middleweight title
- Sam Noakes vs Ryan Walsh for the British lightweight title
- Solomon Dacres vs David Adeleye at heavyweight
- Lawrence Okolie vs Hussein Muhamed at heavyweight
- Aloys Youmbi vs Lewis Oakford at cruiserweight
- Sean Noakes vs Mathew Rennie at welterweight
- Pierce O’Leary vs TBA at super lightweight
- Royston Barney-Smith vs Andres Navarrete at super featherweight
- Billy Adams vs Jonatas Rodrigo Gomes de Oliveira at super featherweight
- George Crotty vs Dylan Courtney at light heavyweight
Quotes corner
Lawrence Okolie: “I’m expecting him to come for it. I think everyone that boxes me gives, you know, 20, 30 per cent more than they do in most of their other fights because it’s a good opportunity and a great scalp to get. So I expect him to come for it. I was literally cruiserweight last year, despite winning the bridgerweight world title, so I expect him to come thinking I’m a smaller guy and he’s going to be able to, you know, out-man me and out-power me and go for it. So it’s up to me to show him that it’s not the case.”
Hussein Muhamed: “I expect a very strong Lawrence Okolie, but anyways, don’t say that you will knock me out in the first six rounds. Trust me, trust me bro.”