Things you need to know about Nick Ball next opponent Nathanael Kakololo
Rising featherweight star Nick Ball (15-0, 8KO) will make a first defence of his WBC Silver title against Namibian Nathanael Kakololo (14-3-1, 6KO) in a late change of opponent at the Copper Box Arena on July 16.
The ferocious Liverpool puncher as originally due to fight for the vacant British title against Commonwealth featherweight champon Nathaniel Collins, but the Scot was forced to withdraw due to injury and the battle for the Lonsdale belt will go ahead at a later date.
As it's his first fight in the UK, not a lot is known about the visiting fighter or what kind of threat he could pose to Ball's unbeaten record and rapid rise up the ranks, so BBN have listed some vital facts below:
He was born Nathanael Vafifaounje Kakololo in the small settlement of Etombia and now resides in Windhoek, which is the capital and largest city of Namibia.
He is currently 33-years-old.
His boxing nickname is 'Natty'.
He is ranked the second best featherweight in Namibia by BoxRec, and 99th in the world.
Kakololo holds a record of 14-3-1 with six stoppages and he last fought in May with a sixth round stoppage of Kasimu Hamad Haji.
He is part of the MTC Salute Boxing Academy, trained by Tobias Nashilongo and managed by Kiriata Kamanya. The gym is one of the biggest boxing clubs in Namibia and were very active helping their local area during the pandemic, when they donated over 200 food parcels to different Namibian boxers in an effort to assist them through the lockdown period. The gym is sponsored by Desert Lager.
He won the African Union featherweight title in August 2019 and made a successful defence in the December, followed by another defence in February 2021. However, because not all the event results over the years have been reported correctly to BoxRec, his pro boxing record remains incomplete. According to the World Boxing Council, he has made three successful defences of his ABU belt.
He stepped up to challenge for the WBO Intercontinental title in June 2021 but dropped a majority decision to the 27-0 Oleg Malinovskyi in Ukraine.
He then lost his next fight to another unbeaten boxer in 13-0 Andranik Grigorian (UD10), just one month later in Russia. However, the Namibian is still upset over the resut claiming that it wasn't accurate, “What happened in Ukraine was a clear win for me. They robbed me of the WBO title. In Russia, they're supposed to give me a draw. This time around I'm going to be my own judge.”
Kakololo comes into the Ball fight off a run of three straight victories, with two of the wins coming via stoppage.
What has he said of Nick Ball fight?
Nathanael Kakololo: “Champions don't get ready, a champion stays ready. My coaches polished me. I've never been fit like this before. It is a long time coming. I was supposed to fight for this WBC title in South Africa, but that fight didn't materialise. This is my time now. This is the right time. I'm going to get it in London.
“I am feeling good and I am feeling at home. I used to see him fight and I have seen him struggling but, for me, he is a good customer for me. He is a small boy and I just want to tell him that every champion was once a contender. I hung up my WBA African belt at home and I have come to challenge for the WBC. I am here to win and become WBC champion. Champions stay ready and I am ready for him. I am ready for anything at any time.”
Roll of Honour
Interim Namibian featherweight title
WBF International featherweight title
African Boxing Union featherweight title
