Martin Bakole put the entire heavyweight division on notice over the weekend with his eye-opening fifth-round KO of previously-undefeated Jared Anderson.
With the victory, Bakole immediately drew comparisons to boxing legend George Foreman for their similar size and build and for the way the Congolese fighter hit Anderson with accurate, heavy-handed blunt force — not to mention, the way he could absorb punishment as well.
It's a comparison that Bakole is embracing.
"I told my coach, I'm going to fight this guy (Anderson) like a George Foreman," Bakole revealed on "The PorterWay Podcast."
"I know they're young, I can take a punch," he continued. "I can take risks because in America, if I go in points I'm risking to lose the fight. I will take risks, give everything."
Those timed risks paid off for three knockdowns toward the emphatic KO.
Bakole added there's similarity to the way he and Foreman smoothly tuck their left hands by their waists, waiting for the apt moment to pounce.
"If you watch 'Big' George Foreman, sometimes his hands are like that because I can't put my hands down if I'm not feeling anything coming from my opponent," he pointed out further. "I will test his jab. If he doesn't have a good jab, if his jab is weak, I'll take his jab to land my left hook. If he's got a good jab, I'll never put my hand down."
Bakole stands two inches taller than Foreman at six-foot-six.
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