Former WBC top contender Efe Ajagba has pledged to knock out veteran Charles Martin in their heavyweight clash at Sunday’s Zuffa Boxing main event in Las Vegas.
The Nigerian powerhouse dismissed Martin’s punching ability while promising a decisive finish. “He’s not a puncher. I’ve fought people that punch, not people like Charles Martin. Charles Martin can’t punch. I can’t wait,” Ajagba told Ring magazine.
“I’m gonna knock him out. Charles Martin doesn’t like to put his hands up. But I don’t care – if he picks his hands up, it doesn’t matter to me. I’ll just touch him, touch him, touch him, touch him.”
The 31-year-old Ajagba, who holds a professional record of 20-1-1 with 14 knockouts, represented Nigeria at the Olympics before turning professional. He climbed the WBC rankings following a split-decision victory over Italian Guido Vianello in April 2024. However, he has been largely inactive over the past two years, including a draw against Congo’s Martin Bakole last May in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Martin, 39, enters the bout with a record of 30-4-1, including 27 knockouts. The St. Louis native briefly held the IBF heavyweight title in January 2016 after defeating Russian Vyacheslav Glazkov but lost it three months later to Anthony Joshua. Martin has fought just once since November 2024, scoring a first-round knockout over journeyman Matthew McKinney.
The matchup marks a critical opportunity for Ajagba to secure a win in Zuffa Boxing’s first heavyweight headliner, potentially paving the way for bigger bouts later in 2026
