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Lawrence Okolie is yet to lose a bout. In a career that began five years ago, he won all eighteen fights, out of which fourteen were knockout victories. ‘The Sauce’ has defended his WBO Cruiserweight title twice since he packed off Krzysztof Glowacki on 20th March 2021. But the bout he is having outside the ring has turned one’s head.

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An interview given to the Boxing King Media is now available on YouTube. It reveals Lawrence’s thoughts and views on his stormy relationship with the sponsors of Matchroom Sports and its boss Eddie Hearn.

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A clip of the interview is doing the round on social media platforms.

Eddie Hearn, Lawrence Okolie’s DiCaprio

The relationship took a downturn when Lawrence posted a few tweets that were seemingly not up to par. Rumors by this time were in the air, with only one fight left per the contract signed with Matchroom, an offer from Boxxer and Sky Sports bowled over The Sauce.

Last year, Eddie Hearn called curtains on the deal with Sky Sports. And subsequently, by 3rd June 2021, he entered a five-year contract with live streamers DAZN.

Read More: Lawrence Okolie Says His Mom Will Disown Him if He Fights Anthony Joshua

Lawrence posted the first tweet where he compared Eddie Hearn with Leonardo DiCaprio’s character Calvin Candie. The Oscar-winning actor had donned the role in Quentin Tarantino’s 2012 movie Django Unchained.

The second tweet was an incomplete sentence, Tbh, @EddieHearn is a.”

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In a final tweet, Okolie mentioned, “The problem is too often we let those ‘in power’ dictate the narrative.”

Later erased, however, the readers could make the target of the posts.

Lawrence Okolie; finally a Boxxer?

Unfortunately, it comes in the wake of common knowledge of how Eddie Hearn had taken a raw Lawrence under his wings once the latter’s Olympics journey was over.

Criticisms apart, Hearn continued to back the Cruiserweight. One of the most successful fighters in Matchroom’s roster even received a Rolex watch worth £50,000 when he won the world title.

The twenty-nine-year-old boxer of Nigerian origin has higher hopes for his future with Sky Sports/Boxxer.

On the other hand, Eddie Hearn is disappointed at the unexpected turn of events. The Matchroom boss highlighted securing a considerable amount for the Glowacki fight and the subsequent defense against Cieslak this year, along with Anthony Joshua.

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Okolie called out on social media early in November, “Can’t lie this year was turning me of boxing. Dirty, lying, narcissistic individuals who ‘run’ the sport. How I feel right now…reminds me that that’s a selfish outlook, our fights mean so much more to so many more people than ourselves.”

Hearn claims that he and Okolie got along fine but that tensions arose with the latter adding additional people to his camp.

Hearn said to IFL TV, “Everything was positive until he started hanging around people who have no idea. The last thing we ever wanna do is go to court with a fighter, but I will never let someone take the p!ss out of the loyalty job we’ve delivered for them.”

Watch Out for More: Eddie Hearn and the AJ – Fury fight

Given that he has not faced a single opponent since February this year, The Sauce’s future course of action remains unclear.

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Jaideep R Unnithan

3,743 Articles

Jaideep R. Unnithan is a Senior Boxing Writer at EssentiallySports and one of the division’s most trusted voices. Since joining in October 2022, he has brought a deep love for the sport into every story, whether reporting on live bouts with the ES LiveEvent Desk or unpacking the legacy of fighters from different eras as part of the features desk. Trained under EssentiallySports’ prestigious Journalistic Excellence Program, which is a specialized training initiative designed to refine top writers' skills through mentorship and advanced sports journalism techniques, Jaideep’s writing reflects a quiet authority shaped by two years of covering boxing’s flashpoints and fault lines. He is drawn to the warrior code of legends like Alexis Argüello and Marvin Hagler, while also staying attuned to the promise of rising stars like Jesse 'Bam' Rodriguez, David Benavidez, and Dmitry Bivol. Jaideep has a special fascination with Naoya Inoue’s old-school grit. Beyond writing, he reads widely, a habit that sharpens his storytelling, whether he’s tracing the rhythm of a classic fight or preparing his next ringside dispatch. Before joining EssentiallySports, Jaideep worked as a client manager and team manager in corporate roles, bringing strong organizational and communication skills to his journalistic career. He has also completed notable certifications, including a Non-Fiction Book Writing Workshop.

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Arijit Saha

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