Heavyweight Martin Bakole stung in mouth by wasp during TKO win

Martin Bakole said he suffered several stings when he swallowed a wasp during his fourth-round TKO victory over Carlos Takam on Saturday in Riydah, Saudi Arabia.

Bakole, ESPN’s No. 9 heavyweight, began coughing during his interview with IFLTV on Saturday while discussing the bizarre incident. Despite the jabs, Bakole beat Takam, a former heavyweight title challenger, until the referee stopped the Tyson Fury-Francis Ngannou undercard fight.

“I can’t believe it. Oh, I’m surprised,” said Bakole, 30. “I was still coughing until now and it was bothering me in the ring and I was surprised that it was in my mouth. … I was throwing up in my mouth in the locker room. I kept throwing up for a minute. I think [the wasp] is still there. »

Bakole (20-1, 15 KOs) upset Olympic gold medalist Tony Yoka last year in Paris. Bakole’s only professional loss came against Michael Hunter in 2018 via 10th round TKO.

He is the younger brother of former cruiserweight titleholder Junior Makabu. Originally from the Democratic Republic of Congo, Bakole now fights out of the UK as he inches closer to his first heavyweight title shot.