Yoka vs Bakole

Who won Yoka vs Bakole?

Martin Bakole Ilunga beat Tony Yoka by majority decision in their 10 round contest on Saturday, May 14th, 2022, at Accord Hotels Arena, Paris.

The scorecards were announced as 96-92, 94-94, 95-93 in favor of winner Martin Bakole Ilunga.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 10 rounds in the Heavyweight division, which meant there was no weight limit.

Yoka vs Bakole stats

Back in May 2022, Tony Yoka stepped into the ring with an undefeated record of 11 wins, zero losses, and 0 draws, 9 of those wins coming by way of knockout.

Martin Bakole Ilunga made his way to the ring with a record of 17 wins, 1 loss and 0 draws, with 13 of those wins by knockout.

The stats suggested Yoka had a slight advantage in power over Bakole, with a 82% knockout percentage compared to Bakole's 76%.

Tony Yoka was the older man by 1 year, at 30 years old.

Yoka had a height advantage of 4 inches over Bakole. That also extended to a 5-inch reach advantage.

Both Tony Yoka and Martin Bakole Ilunga fought out of an orthodox stance.

Yoka was the less experienced professional fighter, having had 7 fewer fights, and made his debut in 2017, 3 years and 2 months later than Bakole, whose first professional fight was in 2014. He had fought 4 fewer professional rounds, totaling 81 compared to Bakole's 85.

Yoka vs Bakole form

Yoka had won 5 of his most recent fights, stopping 4 of them, going the distance once.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he had defeated Petar Milas on September 10, 2021, by technical knockout in the 7th round at Roland Garros, Paris, France.

Prior to that, he had defeated Joel Tambwe Djeko on March 5, 2021, by technical knockout in the 12th round at H Arena, Loire-Atlantique.

Going into that contest, he had beaten Christian Hammer on November 27, 2020, by unanimous decision in their 10 round contest at H Arena, Loire-Atlantique.

Before that, he had won against Johann Duhaupas on September 25, 2020, by technical knockout in the 1st round at Paris, Paris.

He had beaten Michael Wallisch on September 28, 2019, by technical knockout in the 3rd round at H Arena, Loire-Atlantique.

Bakole had won 5 of his most recent fights, stopping 4 of them, going the distance once.

In his last fight before this contest, he had defeated Haruna Osumanu on September 18, 2021, by knockout in the 1st round at Sport Society, Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Prior to that, he had defeated Sergey Kuzmin on December 12, 2020, by unanimous decision in their 10 round contest at Wembley (SSE) Arena, London, United Kingdom.

Going into that contest, he had won against Rodney Hernandez on November 2, 2019, by technical knockout in the 2nd round at Manchester Arena, Lancashire.

Before that, he had defeated Kevin Johnson on October 19, 2019, by technical knockout in the 5th round at Newcastle Arena, Tyne and Wear.

He had beaten Ytalo Perea on August 2, 2019, by technical knockout in the 1st round at Exhibition Centre, Liverpool.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, Tony Yoka had been fighting more than Martin Bakole Ilunga.

Going into this contest, Tony Yoka had last fought 8 months and 4 days ago, while Martin Bakole Ilunga's last outing had been 7 months and 26 days ago.

Yoka's last 5 fights had come over a period of 2 years, 7 months and 16 days, which means he had been fighting approximately every 6 months and 10 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 33 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 6.6 rounds on average.

Bakole's last 5 fights had come over a period of 2 years, 9 months and 12 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 6 months and 22 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 19 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 3.8 rounds on average.

What time did Yoka vs Bakole start?

The fighters were expected to ringwalk at around 9:00 PM UTC at Accord Hotels Arena, Paris, France, which was 5:00 PM EST or 2:00 PM PST on the West Coast of America, or 10:00 PM BST in the UK.

Who broadcast Yoka vs Bakole?

The ESPN+ show began at 1:00 PM EST / 10:00 AM PST. The Premier Sports broadcast of the card started at 8:00 PM (BST).

What were the odds on Yoka vs Bakole?

Tony Yoka was a 21/100 (-480) favorite going into the contest, while Martin Bakole Ilunga made his way into the ring at 79/25 (+320) with oddsmakers.