Sakio Bika admits: “I’m injury free for the first time in two years”

SUNDAY afternoon might be the last time Sakio Bika fights on Australian shores.

If this is truly the case, the Cameroon native will go out in style, promoting one of the best cards of the year while featuring in the main event. Bika will face durable Serbian Geard Ajetovic for the vacant WBC Silver super middleweight strap at the picturesque Star Casino in Sydney.

Now in the final chapter of his storied career, Bika (33-7-3, 22 KOs) is looking to work his way towards one final challenge at the WBC super middleweight title. The famed green belt is currently in the possession of American dynamo David Benavidez, who picked up the vacant belt with a hard-fought split decision win over Ronald Gavril in September.

To his credit, Bika has assembled a star-studded undercard to compliment the already solid main event that he’s put together alongside leading Sydney promotional entity Neutral Corner Promotions. Many eyes will be on the salivating Commonwealth welterweight title collision between Toowoomba mauler Kris George and OPBF welterweight ruler Jack Brubaker, which could steal the show.

The 38-year-old is the first to praise the line-up underneath him, as well as the cards namesake, Johnny Lewis.

“This is a big card with some great talent, it makes me so happy to be the Main Event at the first Johnny Lewis event at The Star,” said Bika to Aus-Boxing. “It’s always a privilege and an honour to fight in front of my fans in my hometown of Sydney, it has been far too long.”

“The fans will not be disappointed, I’m injury free for the first time in two years and I’ve had an excellent training camp.”

Given the plethora of accomplished world champions that Bika has fought over an incredible seventeen year career, including Andre Ward, Joe Calzaghe and Adonis Stevenson amongst many others, it’s easy to see why many are overlooking the well-travelled Ajetovic. But Bika is the first to praise the staying power of his more experienced counterpart.

“My opponent is a tough champion and he’s never been stopped within the distance,” continued Bika. “I’ve been training hard to fight twelve hard rounds – but if I see an opportunity – I will knock him out. My goal is to rise back to the top of the sport, compete at the highest level and become a world champion again.”

“I can’t look past the challenge I have ahead of me on the weekend, but 2018 will be a big year for me,” he concluded. “I want to stay active and take on the best in the division.”

The fight against Ajetovic will be Bika’s second in four months. Remarkably, he hasn’t seen an active stretch of this kind in almost seven years, when he faced Jean-Paul Mendy and Andre Ward in a four-month window back in 2010.

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