WBO Cruiserweight Champion Marco Huck (34-2, 25 KOs) will make his mandatory defense against interim champion Ola Afolabi (19-2-3, 9 KOs) in Erfurt, Germany on May 5. It will be the second time the two fighters face each other in the ring, with Huck clinching a close points victory in their first meeting in December 2009.
“I had just won the title against Victor Emilio Ramirez and then had to make my first defense against Afolabi,” Huck said. It was a tough fight and I won on points. Afolabi has been victorious in all of his fights ever since. He seems to have gotten stronger. I will be prepared for a hard night on May 5.”
After challenging WBA Heavyweight Champion Alexander Povetkin in February, Huck will have to lose weight again. “He weighed around 95 kilos (210 lbs) prior to the Povetkin fight,” coach Ulli Wegner said. “Now he has to lose five kilos (10 lbs). That is something new for him. He has a lot of muscles, so it won’t be easy. But we will get it done during the hard preparation.”
Team Sauerland General Manager Chris Meyer is happy to bring the fight to Germany. “We look forward to fighting in Erfurt again,” he said. “Huck has great memories of the city. In August 2010, he stopped Matt Godfrey at the Messehalle. After long negotiations with K2’s Tom Loeffler, who represents Afolabi, all important matters have been agreed on. Now the contracts are ready to be signed.”
