Who is Carlos Takam, the man who has stepped in to fight Anthony Joshua?
Many boxing fans would be forgiven for not knowing exactly who Carlos Takam is when it was announced he would be stepping in to fight Anthony Joshua this weekend.
The Cameroon-born Frenchman replaced Kubrat Pulev and will now headline one of the biggest fights of the year alongside British superstar Joshua.
Takam is No.3 in the IBF heavyweight rankings and took the fight with Joshua on just 12 days notice.
Over 70,000 tickets had already been sold for the Cardiff showdown, so for all those people already heading to fight and those of you still undecided, here is all you need to know about Takam.
Including, Joshua’s take on how to stop the 36-year-old.
BIO
Age: 36 Nationality: Cameroon-French Stance: Orthodox Height: 6′ 1.5” Reach: 80.5”
FIGHT RECORD
Fights: 39 Wins: 35 By KO: 27 Losses: 3 Draws: 1 Debut: WIN vs Zine Eddine Benmakhlouf – 10 Dec 2005 Belts: WBC Silver heavyweight title
Takam represented his country of birth at the 2004 Olympics in Athens.
He booked his place after winning the inaugural AIBA African 2004 Olympic Qualifying Tournament.
The heavyweight then moved into the pro ranks and made his debut in 2005, when Joshua had just turned 16 years old.
Takam’s pro career began brightly with 18 wins in a row, 16 of those ending in knockout.
But, the rising star was then undone by a French rival, Gregory Tony.
Takam moved on from the disappointment though and went on a five-year unbeaten run before stepping in with Povetkin in 2014.
At 36, Takam is about to compete in his 40th professional fight with just three losses on his record.
BIGGEST FIGHT
Takam has been in several big fights, mostly recently against WBO champion Joseph Parker.
The heavyweight took the New Zealander 12 rounds and was the last man to face a title-less Parker.
Takam has also been in the ring against famed drugs-cheat Alexander Povetkin.
Povetkin is the only man to have stopped Takam as the Frenchman has shown incredible durability in his 39-fight career.
Takam has so far fallen short up against ‘elite’ competition, but has proven to be difficult to put away.
JOSHUA ON HOW TO BEAT TAKAM
‘He is durable. He will become more durable because he’ll be in hostile territory.
‘When you come into that type of environment, what have you got to lose? He’ll say: ‘I’ll give it my all’.
‘People have said: ‘Josh, what round? What round?’ I think we’re going for a 10 to 12 round fight because this guy’s head is like a block of cement.’
‘With Pulev it wasn’t about whipping him around the body, it was about staying off the line and boxing down the middle.
‘Carlos is different – he can trade down the middle. My speed will beat his combinations. A good way to beat Carlos is to take his body out, that’s what Alexander Povetkin did to him. I look at each individual fighters, and what their strengths are.’
TAKAM’S STYLE
Standing at just over 6 foot, Takam is a different type of boxer to the one Joshua was training for in Pulev.
Takam is stocky and aggressive, but slows considerably in the latter rounds.
Joshua will look to exploit a superior height advantage of five inches and fire to the body to wear Takam down.
