Lukasz Rozanski vs Lawrence Okolie Preview May 24th, 2024
Unbeaten WBC Bridgerweight Champion Lukasz Rozanski will be defending his title in his homeland of Poland this Friday, May 24th when he takes on former WBO Cruiserweight Champion Lawrence Okolie of England. The Bridgerweight Division is for boxers between 200 and 224 lbs and the 12-rounder can be seen live in the UK and Ireland on Sky Sports Action while fans in America can catch it on NBC Peacock. Okolie suffered his lone pro defeat the last time out last May when Chris Billam-Smith beat him by majority decision to take his Cruiserweight Title. He had won the vacant belt in 2021 by stopping Krzysztof Glowacki in the sixth round and then stopped Dilan Prasovic in the third round in his first defence followed by unanimous decisions over Michal Cieslak and David Light before losing to Billam-Smith. Rozanski last fought in April when he stopped Alen Babic in just 130 seconds to win the vacant WBC Bridgerweight Belt.
Rozanski vs Okolie Betting Odds
Here are the betting odds from online sportsbook BetOnline.ag (full review here).
- Lukasz Rozanski +220
- Lawrence Okolie -280
My Pick
The 38-year-old Rozanski makes the ring walk with a perfect record of 15-0 with 14 Ko’s and has boxed just 26 rounds since turning pro in 2015 following his amateur career. It’s quite obvious the champion possesses real power as his current knockout ratio stands at 93.3 per cent. The only man to go the distance with him was Artsiom Charniakevich, who lasted four rounds back in 2015 in Rozanski’s second pro fight. Rozanski has eight first-round knockouts along with five in the second stanza and has never gone past four rounds.
He stands 6-feet-1-inch tall with a 74-inch reach, has a tremendous right hook and has beaten opponents such as Laszlo Toth, Albert Sosnowski, Michael Sprott, Eriks Kalasnikovs and Artur Szpilka. He also stopped Izuagbe Ugonoh in the fourth round in 2019 to capture the vacant Polish Heavyweight Title. Rozanski has fought as a heavyweight in the past and weighed in as heavy as 245 lbs.
Okolie is 31 years old and big and lanky at 6-feet-5-inches tall with a record of 19-1 with 14 Ko’s and is listed as having an 82.5-inch reach. This gives him a four-inch edge in height and 8.5-inch reach advantage on Rozanski. He’s boxed 108 rounds since making his pro debut in 2017 and so far has displayed impressive power as 73.7 per cent of his wins have been by stoppage but has gone the distance in his last three fights.
He won the vacant WBA Continental Cruiserweight Title in 2018 via a 10-round unanimous decision over Isaac Chamberlain. Okolie then added the Commonwealth Crown a few months later by stopping Luke Watkins in the third round. He’s also beaten Matty Askin and Wadi Camacho to add the British Title and hoisted the European Cruiserweight Belt in October, 2019 with a seventh-round TKO of Yves Ngabu. He stepped up in class earlier in 2020 when he met Glowacki and passed the test with flying colours.
Before turning pro, Okolie enjoyed a fine amateur career and won the 2016 AIBA European Olympic Qualification Event. He boxed in the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil where he beat Igor Jakubowski of Poland and lost to Erislandy Savon of Cuba. Okolie also boxed in the World Series of Boxing in 2016 for Britain and was beaten by Erislandy Savon again.
Prediction…
Lukasz Rozanski sure hits hard but he’s 38 years old and has never gone past four rounds. He starts throwing punches when the bell rings to start a fight and doesn’t stop until the job is finished. He’s never fought outside of his homeland and will once again be boxing in front of his Polish fans. Okolie will be stepping up in weight slightly from the 200 lb cruiserweight division while Rozanski has often fought as a heavyweight. Okolie has a habit of clinching and was deducted a point in both the fifth and seventh rounds when losing his title to Billam-Smith. Also, Okolie was dropped in the fourth, 10th and 11th rounds in that fight. If Okolie can get past the first few rounds it will be interesting to see what type of stamina Rozanski possesses. Okolie needs to his size advantage as the matador here but I believe the bull, Rozanski will eventually work his way inside and retain his belt.
Rozanski’s power should be the difference
Play: Rozanski +220 @ BetOnline.ag
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Lawrence Okolie betting • Lukasz Rozanski betting