The undercard of Tyson Fury’s exhibition bout with Francis Ngannou has a few intriguing match-ups and former heavyweight title contender Carlos Takam is on the bill as he faces off against Martin Bakole - here's everything you need to know about the showdown.

Takam called out Bakole in the aftermath of his last outing, a split decision win over Tony Yoka in Paris, and has got his wish - with the duo set to meet in Saudi Arabia this weekend.
 

Martin Bakole v Carlos Takam: All You Need To Know

Martin Bakole v Carlos Takam date

The 10-round fight between Martin Bakole and Carlos Takam is due to take place on Saturday 28th October, as part of the undercard for the meeting between WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury and former UFC heavyweight champion Francis Ngannou.
 

Martin Bakole v Carlos Takam time

The bout is scheduled to take place at around 21:00 UK time, although this is dependent upon the length of other undercard bouts.
 

Where is Martin Bakole v Carlos Takam?

The event is due to take place at the King Fahd International Stadium in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. 

Fury is fighting in Saudi Arabia for the first time but his next bout will also take place in the Middle Eastern country, as he is set to take on Oleksandr Usyk in a huge showdown that will see the victor emerge as the unified heavyweight world champion.
 

How to watch Martin Bakole v Carlos Takam?

The fight will be broadcast by TNT Sports Box Office for fans in the UK at a price of £21.95.
 

Are there any belts on the line in Martin Bakole v Carlos Takam?

Neither Bakole nor Takam currently hold any titles, so no strap will be on the line in Riyadh.
 

Martin Bakole’s profile & record

19-1 (14 KOs)

Bakole has a 19-1 record and 14 of his victories have come inside the distance.

The DR Congo-native won his first 11 fights against relative unknowns before making a huge step up in class to face Michael Hunter in 2018. 

Former WBC cruiserweight champion Hunter had stepped up to heavyweight and he claimed the then vacant IBO Inter-Continental title by stopping Bakole in the final round of their 10-round contest.

Bakole responded well to that defeat with an eye-catching victory of his own, an eighth round TKO victory over Mariusz Wach as an ‘away’ fighter in Poland.

The Congolese heavyweight has since beaten the likes of Kevin Johnson and Sergey Kuzmin, and is ranked highly in the WBA rankings so there is a chance he could become mandatory with that governing body. 

Bakole, 30, became the first fighter to beat Tony Yoka in May of 2022 and was last in action in April, claiming a third round victory over Ihor Shevadzutskyi.
 

Carlos Takam's profile & record

40-1-7 (28 KOs)

Carols Takam has 40 wins on his record with seven defeats and one draw. The 42-year-old Cameroonian-born Frenchman has managed 28 victories inside the distance.

Takam made his professional debut in 2005 and won his first 18 fights before that run was brought to an end by Gregory Tony, who handed him a unanimous decision defeat after eight rounds in 2009.

Takam responded in style, stopping Roman Kracik in the first round in his next fight, in the first of an 11-fight winning streak that ended with his first, and so far only, draw against Mike Perez in a showdown for the WBC USA Heavy silver title.

Takam then won the WBC Silver title with an impressive win over Tony Thompson, but lost that belt and his position in the WBC rankings as he was stopped in the 10th round by Alexander Povetkin.

Former WBO champion Joseph Parker beat Takam in 2016 but he did manage to get a shot at a world title the following year. Takam faced Anthony Joshua for the IBF, IBO and WBA belts in 2017 but was stopped in the 10th round.

After a defeat to Derek Chisora, Takam recorded four wins in succession before back-to-back losses to Joe Joyce and Arslanbek Makhmudov in minor title fights. Takam was last in action in March with a split decision win over Yoka. 
 

Martin Bakole v Carlos Takam odds & favourite

Bakole is the clear favourite at 1/6, and Takam is priced at 7/2 in the standard bout betting markets. 
 

Martin Bakole v Carlos Takam undercard

Tyson Fury v Francis Ngannou	Heavyweight bout
David Adeleye v Fabio Wardley	Heavyweight bout
Joseph Parker v Simon Kean	Heavyweight bout
Martin Bakole v Carlos Takam	Heavyweight bout
Moses Itauma v Istvan Bernath	Heavyweight bout
Jack McGann v Alcibiade Duran Galvan	Super-welterweight bout

This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.