Martin Bakole’s trainer, Billy Nelson, has been assured that the Congolese heavyweight’s scheduled fight with Efe Ajagba will still go ahead despite the 33 year-old suffering a second round stoppage defeat to Joseph Parker on Saturday night.

Bakole, 21-2 (16 KOs), and Ajagba, 20-1 (14 KOs), had been set to meet in an IBF title final eliminator on May 2nd, but Bakole’s last minute, trans-global dash to replace the stricken IBF champion, Daniel Dubois, on Saturday night’s ‘The Last Crescendo’ card in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, threw those plans up in the air.

Bakole was on holiday in the Congo when he received the offer to fight Parker at 7pm on Thursday evening. After an arduous journey, he stepped off a plane in Riyadh at 3am on the morning of the fight and scaled a colossal 310lbs.

Although he got Parker’s attention with a couple of heavy right hands, the New Zealander landed a heavy right of his own midway through the second round. Bakole went down in instalments and although he got to his feet, Nelson climbed up onto the ring apron and ensured that the fight was rightly halted.

The lucrative risk may not have paid off but Nelson revealed that whilst the clash with Ajagba will lose it’s status as a final eliminator, the plan is for Bakole to now return to his Glasgow training base to prepare for the fight.

“It was life changing money for him,” Nelson told Ring Magazine after the fight. “He accepted the fight, even though he hadn’t sparred since August. We can’t use that as an excuse. When you say ‘Yes’ you know the risks. Martin was in that fight until getting clipped and I wasn’t happy with the reaction when he got up from the knockdown and I stopped the fight. I’m comfortable with that.

“He’s took a risk and it’s not paid off. Ultimately, we’re still fighting on May 2nd. It won’t be a final eliminator now but his Excellency Turki Alalshikh said that we’ll still be fighting on May 2nd against Efe Ajagba so it’s straight back in the gym at the middle to end of next week and he has to get a full camp in behind him.”