Just 24 hours after the massive Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua Netflix main card was finally unveiled, one of its three undercard fights is already in serious doubt, with lawyers now involved. The announced heavyweight bout between Martin Bakole and Solomon Adebayo for the Dec. 11 card blindsided Bakole’s own promoter, Ben Shalom of BOXXER, who reportedly found out about it the same way everyone else did.
A Promoter’s Outcry: “Nothing Has Changed”
This isn’t some minor misunderstanding, folks. Shalom told Uncrowned on Thursday that he saw the Bakole-Adebayo announcement at the exact same time as the general public. That’s a huge red flag right there. Bakole hasn’t fought since his draw with Efe Ajagba way back in May 2025. There were talks for him to fight Guido Vianello in May on another undercard, but that never went down. Bakole apparently believed he was out of his contract with BOXXER around that time. But Shalom says Bakole was offered “numerous fights” between the Ajagba bout and the Vianello offer, and Bakole just didn’t accept them. When asked directly if Bakole was still under contract just Wednesday, Shalom was crystal clear, stating “Nothing has changed since our position in April/May.” This isn’t just a spat: the BOXXER CEO has already referred the entire matter to his legal team. You know it’s getting real when the lawyers get involved.
Zuffa Boxing’s Shadow: A Familiar Accusation
Shalom isn’t just calling this a contract dispute. He suspects Dana White’s Zuffa Boxing is behind the move and believes they might have been talking to Bakole earlier this year. Uncrowned understands that White had a big hand in putting together the Fury vs. Joshua undercard, even though his contract keeps him from promoting the actual event in Cardiff, Wales. And get this: the two other undercard fights, Jai Opetaia vs. Deontay Wilder and Da’Mazion Vanhouter vs. Michael Essomba, both feature Zuffa Boxing fighters. This isn’t the first time Zuffa Boxing has faced accusations of “tortious interference,” which is a fancy legal term for messing with someone else’s contract. BOXXER was already reportedly suing Zuffa Boxing back in June over alleged poaching of Chris Billam-Smith and Sam Hickey, and they also planned to argue that English boxer Jack Massey still had a fight left with their promotion. Plus, Don King sent Zuffa Boxing a cease-and-desist in September. Why? Because Zuffa Boxing made the Noel Mikaelian vs. Jai Opetaia fight on the Ryan Garcia vs. Conor Benn undercard, and King claimed to have exclusive rights to Mikaelian’s fights. Opetaia ended up winning that one with a ninth-round TKO.
So, what does this all mean for the Dec. 11 Fury vs. Joshua card? With legal teams gearing up and a history of similar disputes, this Bakole fight is absolutely up in the air. We’ll have to wait and see how this all shakes out, but one thing is for sure: the drama outside the ring is already heating up way before any punches are thrown.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Yahoo Sports.
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