Lawrence Okolie will make the second defence of his WBO cruiserweight belt against former world title challenger Michal Cieslak at The O2 in London on Sunday February 27, shown live worldwide on DAZN (excluding New Zealand and Australia).

Hackney's Okolie (17-0, 14 KOs) crushed Krzysztof Glowacki in six rounds to be crowned the new WBO cruiserweight world champion in just his sixteenth fight at The SSE Arena, Wembley in March last year.

The 29-year-old then made short work of Montenegro's Dilan Prasovic in the first defence of his world title on the blockbuster Anthony Joshua vs. Oleksandr Usyk card at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in September, taking out his mandatory challenger in just three rounds. 

Poland's Cieslak (21-1, 15 KOs) suffered the one and only loss of his professional career when he took WBC cruiserweight world champion Ilunga Junior Makabu the distance in the Democratic Republic Of The Congo in January 2020. 

"Thank you to Cieslak for accepting the fight," said Okolie. "I'm sure he is coming to get revenge for Glowacki! He is a good, strong campaigner who should be one of my toughest tests to date."

At some point, the towering Okolie is planning to make a move to the heavyweight division.

Once there, Okolie wants to face top competition right from the start.

“I was moved fast at cruiserweight, and I expect to do the same at heavyweight,” said Okolie to DAZN News.

“I’m world champion at cruiserweight and that shows the level I’m at and I don’t want to drop down just because I’m at heavyweight. I believe in my team and the people I’ve got around me and when the time comes to get to heavyweight, I want the best fights from the start.”