Nigerian-born Lawrence Okolie fails to Impress at Wembley

Lawrence Okolie defeated Kevin Lerena by unanimous decision in a lackluster 10-round bout at Wembley Stadium, on the undercard of the Oleksandr Usyk vs. Daniel Dubois rematch.

The British fighter retained his WBA Continental cruiserweight title but failed to make a case to fight the reigning heavyweight fight.

The judges scored the fight 100-90 twice and 99-91, all in favor of Okolie. Only one judge awarded Lerena a single round.

Lerena looked to land his left straight in the opening round, while Okolie focused on body shots. Referee Victor Loughlin had to separate the fighters several times in the second.

Okolie tried to establish his left straight, missing with a right uppercut but continuing to target the body. Lerena landed a left just before the bell, but Okolie had already taken control.

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Lerena struggled to get past Okolie's long reach, though the third round was more evenly contested.

Trainer Joe Gallagher, who works with Okolie at Champ’s Camp in Manchester, urged his fighter to work behind the jab, which Okolie did more effectively in the fourth.

The action slowed further in rounds five and six, with boxingscene.com reporting that the crowd seemed increasingly eager for the main event between Usyk and Dubois.

Okolie's best work came when he maintained distance and utilized his reach advantage, but he too often found himself at mid-range, where neither he nor Lerena did enough to engage the audience.

There was little action. Okolie remained cautious, while Lerena failed to engage. The crowd even began to boo in the eighth round.

If the situation could be described as one fighter unwilling and the other unable, Okolie was the former and Lerena the latter. The fight went the distance without much excitement.

Okolie is the #1 contender in the WBC rankings. Usyk, who knocked out Dubois, is the current champion, and Agit Kabayel is the WBC interim champion.

Okolie now boasts a record of 22 wins and 1 loss (16 by knockout).

His only defeat came against Chris Billam-Smith, who stripped him of the WBO cruiserweight title. Okolie subsequently moved up to bridgerweight (200-225 lbs) and won a belt.

The 33-year-old Lerena from Johannesburg now holds a record of 31 wins and 2 losses (15 by knockout).

His second loss, again in a football stadium, came against Dubois in a far more entertaining fight. Lerena knocked down the injured Dubois three times before being stopped.