Bakole and Vanhouter Added to Fury-Joshua Card in Cardiff

Cardiff just got heavier. Martin Bakole is coming back from a year and a half out of the ring, and Zuffa's 21-year-old wrecking ball Da'Mazion Vanhouter is turning right back around, both on the Fury vs. Joshua card.

Two more heavyweight fights were announced Wednesday for Friday, Dec. 11, at Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales, live on Netflix. Bakole faces unbeaten Solomon Adebayo, and Vanhouter takes on Michael Essomba. Turki Alalshikh and The Ring posted the bouts at the same time, and more fights are still to be announced.

T TURKI ALALSHIKH@Turki_alalshikh

BOXING’S BIGGEST NIGHT IS SET 🥊🔥 Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua headlines a stacked card featuring Deontay Wilder vs Jai Opetaia, Da’Mazion Vanhouter vs Michael Essomba, and Martin Bakole vs Solomon Adebayo — with more fights to be announced. December 11 | Principality Stadium, Cardiff Live only on Netflix #FuryJoshua | @RingMagazine

The Card So Far

• Tyson Fury vs. Anthony Joshua
• Deontay Wilder vs. Jai Opetaia
• Martin Bakole vs. Solomon Adebayo
• Da'Mazion Vanhouter vs. Michael Essomba

That's four heavyweight fights, counting Wilder vs. Opetaia, the official co-main, where the cruiserweight champion moves up to meet one of the hardest punchers the division has ever seen.

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Bakole's Comeback

Bakole hasn't fought since May 2025, when he and Efe Ajagba fought to a majority draw, The Ring and Boxing News reported. That came three months after Bakole took a fight with Joseph Parker in Saudi Arabia on very short notice, when Daniel Dubois pulled out sick, and was stopped inside two rounds. Before that, wins over Carlos Takam and Jared Anderson had him in title talk, Boxing News noted.

Adebayo is 15-0, according to Boxing News, but hasn't been in with anybody at Bakole's level. Boxing News also reported he was still booked for a fight later this month, though that one probably won't go ahead now.

Vanhouter Stays Busy

Vanhouter was in the ring just last Saturday at Copper Box Arena in London, where he took out Ivan Balaz in the first round at Zuffa Boxing 12. Dana White had already said he wanted him back on the Cardiff card. "Is this kid the next great American heavyweight? And the answer seems to be yes right now," White told Sky Sports. "The truth of the matter is why would you not want to be on that card? That's the card you want to be on, especially if you're a heavyweight."

The Kimster's Take

Here's the real story with Bakole: the scale. A 33-year-old heavyweight who's been out for a year and a half is going to get looked at hard at the weigh-in. If he shows up in shape, he's still the guy nobody in the top ten wants to see, and the belts are spread all over the place right now. If he doesn't, an undefeated kid with nothing to lose gets the night of his life in front of a stadium. As for Vanhouter, five weeks between fights at 21 is how prospects used to get built. It's fun, and it's a little risky.

Want more on this card? The main event's ring walks may not start until about 1 a.m., and a Nov. 25 Cardiff council hearing decides that. You can also check how Vanhouter's last fight week started with the Zuffa Boxing 12 weigh-in. And if you've got a feeling about Fury vs. Joshua, put your pick in Fight Picker before Dec. 11.