Lawrence Okolie had agreed to replace Daniel Dubois against Joseph Parker

Lawrence Okolie is in Riyadh for today’s seven-fight extravaganza – just not in the capacity he’d hoped for.

Okolie, a former cruiserweight and bridgerweight titleholder now competing at heavyweight, was offered an interim WBO title fight with Joseph Parker when Parker’s original opponent, IBF beltholder Daniel Dubois, had to pull out just days before the bout due to illness.

“We accepted immediately,” Okolie, 21-1 (16 KOs), said during Saturday’s pay-per-view broadcast. “We were in Dubai; it was an hour journey. I believed in myself. I believed I was going to get the job done tonight.”

Instead, Parker, 35-3 (23 KOs), will face heavyweight contender Martin Bakole, 21-1 (16 KOs). As disappointed as Okolie is, the 32-year-old Londoner also seemed to roll with the punches.

“It’s not yours until it’s yours. That’s how I took it,” Okolie said. “Of course it’s painful. This was a chance to kick the door down.”

Okolie moved up to heavyweight in December, needing just 134 seconds to dispose of the 18-1 Hussein Muhamed. Beating Parker would have moved Okolie much further along in the division. Okolie did recognize that at least the powerbrokers – the show’s promoters and boxing financier Turki Alalshikh – were aware that he was willing and ready.

As for Bakole, Okolie gives the 33-year-old from Congo a chance, despite the short notice and the fact that Bakole weighed in at more than 300 pounds.

“He’s got the kind of style that doesn’t rely too much on athleticism,” Okolie said. “I think he’s still going to be very dangerous, because he’s got that natural, big, heavy man power.”