Lawrence Okolie needed less than two rounds to overpower Ebenezer Tetteh in Lagos, forcing the Ghanaian journeyman to retire on his stool before the start of the third. The heavyweight main event, part of the “Chaos in the Ring II” card at Mobolaji Johnson Arena, showcased Okolie’s power but also raised questions about his tactics and long-term prospects at the top level.
From the first seconds of round one, the physical and technical gap between the fighters was obvious. Okolie came out aggressively and quickly found a home for his right hand, rocking the 37-year-old Tetteh badly and sending him stumbling back toward the ropes. The underdog spent most of the round in survival mode, offering little offense and struggling to cope with the pace and size in front of him.
As the round closed, another heavy right hand from Okolie almost put Tetteh down again. When he returned to his corner, his body language suggested a fighter already reconsidering how much more punishment he was willing to take. He looked drained, discouraged and reluctant to continue, despite officially making it through the opening session.
Roughhouse tactics and lack of referee control
While Okolie’s dominance was never in doubt, the way he achieved it drew criticism. Throughout the first round, he repeatedly landed rabbit punches to the back of Tetteh’s head, blows that should have prompted warnings or even point deductions. Instead, the referee allowed the action to continue with minimal intervention.
On several occasions, Okolie also grabbed the back of Tetteh’s head, yanking him forward into uppercuts as he bent over. Those moves added another layer of physical stress to an already overwhelmed opponent and further highlighted the absence of firm officiating. In a fight where the skill and power gap was already substantial, the lack of control from the third man in the ring only made Tetteh’s task more hopeless.
Second-round knockdown and controversial finish
The second round followed the same pattern, with Okolie walking Tetteh down and loading up on right hands. Late in the frame, he landed a right to the head and then cuffed Tetteh with a left hook behind the head, a sequence that sent the Ghanaian to the canvas. The punch that caused the knockdown looked like a textbook rabbit shot, yet it was still scored with no penalty or warning.
After beating the count and seeing out the round, Tetteh returned to his corner clearly finished mentally and physically. The accumulation of legal and illegal shots, combined with the one-sided nature of the contest, left him with little incentive to continue. When the bell was due to sound for the third, he remained seated, effectively ending the fight by retirement and handing Okolie a stoppage victory after just two rounds.
Despite the quick win, Okolie’s physical condition raised eyebrows. Weighing in at 271 pounds and carrying a visible belly, he looked a long way from the lean, explosive cruiserweight who once held a world title. His size helped him bully Tetteh, but the heaviness and lack of sharpness suggested that his current version might struggle badly against fresher, more mobile contenders.
The idea of matching him soon with top names such as WBO champion Fabio Wardley or Agit Kabayel feels risky given how he looked in Lagos. Based on this performance, his power and presence remain dangerous, but his conditioning and discipline leave major question marks over how he would cope in a sustained, high-tempo heavyweight fight.
Tetteh’s choice not to come out for the third round was understandable. He was outgunned, repeatedly hit with borderline and outright illegal punches, and offered almost no path to turning the momentum. In situations like this, continuing often serves only to prolong unnecessary damage rather than produce a heroic turnaround.
The bout also revived wider concerns about officiating standards in mismatches. When a heavily favored fighter is allowed to bend rules without consequence, the underdog is not only overmatched but also under-protected. That double disadvantage can turn a predictable result into an unnecessarily punishing experience, and Lagos provided a clear example of that dynamic.
Okolie’s targets for 2026
In the aftermath, Okolie spoke with the confidence of a man who still sees himself as a future force at the top of the division. He reiterated that being world champion is the position he is used to and publicly set his sights on a title run in 2026. Specifically, he expressed a desire to face rising heavyweight Moses Itauma next in a WBO eliminator, framing Lagos as a step toward that bigger opportunity.
Whether that ambition is realistic will depend on how seriously he addresses his conditioning and technical discipline in upcoming camps. On raw power and size alone, Okolie remains a problem for many heavyweights, but to regain a world title he will need far more than one-sided wins over overmatched opponents.
This result will not dramatically shift the global heavyweight picture, but it does reinsert Okolie’s name into the conversation as a dangerous, if flawed, contender. His Nigerian homecoming delivered a quick, emphatic finish, the kind of highlight that keeps his profile alive and ensures his fights remain attractive to broadcasters and promoters.
For Tetteh, however, this marks another painful setback and intensifies scrutiny over the kind of matchups aging journeymen are being asked to take. As fans, analysts and every boxing news outlet or Youtube Channel dissect the fight, the performance will likely be remembered more for Okolie’s rough edges and Tetteh’s quiet surrender than for any back-and-forth drama.
