Martin Bakole ‘jumped’ at the chance to fight Joseph Parker, covering over 3,800 miles on just two days’ notice to do so.

That’s according to Bakole’s trainer, Billy Nelson, who has asserted that his fighter must ‘grasp’ the opportunity ahead of him as a last-minute replacement for Daniel Dubois.

African powerhouse Bakole is set for the biggest test of his careerCredit: Mark Robinson/Matchroom

He replaced Dubois [left] and will fight Parker [right] on ‘The Last Crescendo’ cardCredit: Getty

Bakole flew from Congo to Ethiopia, then on to Dubai, before finally landing in Saudi Arabia, where he’ll contest the biggest fight of his life this Saturday.

The heavy-handed African superstar will fight Parker for the WBO ‘Interim’ world title on a mouthwatering card billed as ‘The Last Crescendo’.

Artur Beterbiev defends his undisputed light heavyweight titles against Dmitry Bivol in the headline act of the event, which has been described by many fans as the greatest boxing card in the sport’s modern history.

In total, Bakole’s journey from Africa to the Middle East totalled more than 3,800 miles, but his coach, Nelson, recognises there’s only one task at hand.

“Listen, you’ve got to grasp these opportunities, nobody gives you nothing in life. You’ve got to earn it,” Nelson told talkSPORT.

“So it’s his time to go out and work hard and beat Joseph Parker.”

“I’m hoping he’ll have as much rest as he can from the moment he lands until the time we go to the fight.”

Bakole accepted a deal on Thursday from Saudi Boxing Chief Turki Alalshikh to step in for Dubois, who was forced to withdraw from his IBF heavyweight title bout with Parker due to illness.

Lawrence Okolie, David Adeleye and Mourad Aliev were reportedly the frontrunners to replace Dubois.

However, after a frantic press conference on Thursday, it was revealed that Parker will instead face a far sterner test in Bakole, with so much on the line for both heavyweight giants.

Bakole can cement himself as one of boxing’s best heavyweights this weekend

New Zealand’s Parker has traded heavy leather with the world’s bestCredit: GETTY

“In my opinion, it’s no disrespect to Joseph because he’s a good friend. I believe Martin would beat Parker nine and a half times out of ten.

“I think Martin will knock out Parker…there’s already been talks about a rematch which is astounding.

“I’m astounded at it but you know it’s not the worst thing in the world because it’s another top fight for Martin Bakole isn’t it?

“Nothing’s been agreed on that yet though.”

Bakole is fresh off a stunning upset victory over Jared Anderson in May, when he floored the American three times in a devastating fifth-round knockout win.

The 6’6”, 284-pounder has been calling for the biggest fights in boxing to no avail over the last few years, leading the British press calling him ‘the most avoided heavyweight on the planet’.

Reacting to his forthcoming fight with Parker, Bakole expressed his desire to shake things up at Kingdom Arena on Saturday,

“I can’t wait. This is unbelievable. Does it look like I’m dreaming? I’m not dreaming,” he said.

“I think I will shock the world tomorrow. Anytime they ask me to go to war I will be ready.

“I’m waiting on my plane, so I’m waiting to fly to Saudi Arabia for the fight tomorrow…we’re ready to go.

“We got a phone call yesterday, we got a proposal for the fight and I said: ‘I miss Saudi Arabia’.”

His opponent on Saturday, Parker, is in great form having bounced back from a KO defeat to Joe Joce in 2022 with five consecutive wins, including victories over Deontay Wilder and Zhilei Zhang.

Nelson also revealed that his team have been informed about the possibility of an all-African clash with Nigeria’s Efe Ajagba in May, but he also believes Bakole is capable of aiming higher.

“I believe he’s the world’s best heavyweight,” Nelson concluded. “The only person out there that will give Martin a hard time just now or a hard, hard fight would be [Oleksandr] Usyk.

“I believe he would beat Usyk. But Usyk knows that he’ll give him a hard, hard fight and that’s why he’s avoiding him like the plague. He will never fight Martin.”