Social media stars Habeeb ‘Portable’ Badmus and Carter Efe traded fresh threats ahead of their celebrity boxing bout at Chaos in the Ring 4, as the main event fighters Ezra Arenyeka and Godday Appah also exchanged sharp words at a face-off ahead of the May 1 card at the Balmoral Hall, Federal Palace Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos.
Portable, who previously beat both Charles Okocha and Speed Darlington in celebrity exhibition bouts to win two belts, made clear he intended to add a third at Efe’s expense.
“I will use you to collect my third belt. Charles Okocha was bigger than you, Speed Darlington was bigger than you and I beat them. I will beat you now,” he told Efe directly.
Efe was unmoved, dismissing Portable’s record and warning that the bout would be brief.
Portable, Carter Efe face off ahead Friday clash… Credit: Peter Akinbo
“You can’t beat me. You that is scared of me — when we meet in the ring, I will beat you. One punch and you fall,” he fired back.
In the main event, Arenyeka and Appah, whose bout is billed as a symbolic WBO Peace Fight between the Itsekiri and Ijaw communities of the Niger Delta, set aside any goodwill between them at the face-off.
Appah was unsparing in his assessment of what awaited his opponent.
“We were friends but there is no friendship in the ring. Right now, I am fighting for my belt, for my people and for the win. He knows who the king is. I am here for the knockout — this is war. You will not survive six rounds with me,” he said.
Arenyeka replied without hesitation saying, “I am going to break your head. You said six rounds — I will beat you in five. You will sleep in the ring.”
Elsewhere on the card, Ghana’s Elvis Ahorgah and Newcastle’s Joe Laws added their own flavour to proceedings, with Ahorgah delivering his threats in rhyme in the manner of Muhammad Ali, while Laws painted his face in the colours of the Nigerian flag in a bid to win over the home crowd against a fighter from a rival nation.
British southpaw Michael McKinson, whose father is of Nigerian descent, also features on the card against Algerian prospect Mohammad Sahnoun and said he was looking forward to making a statement while soaking in the Nigerian culture.
Balmoral Group Promotions CEO Ezekiel Adamu said the face-offs reflected the broader ambition behind the event.
“It’s entertainment, but I want these young guys to trust me that the world is watching. When you have a platform like this, it changes lives. This is what it is all about for us: giving these guys the opportunity and visibility and showing the best of African boxing. It’s wartime and let’s show the world what we have to offer here in Africa,” he said.
The nine-bout card, promoted by Balmoral Group Promotions in association with former world heavyweight champion Amir Khan’s AK Promotions and sanctioned by the Nigeria Boxing Board of Control, will be broadcast live worldwide on DAZN.
It also features teenage sensation Raheem Animashaun against Tanzanian veteran Emmanuel Amos, national middleweight champion Rasheed Adeyemo against Tanzanian Nicolaus Mdoe, Basit Adebayo against Loren Japhet, UK-based Ghanaian Samuel Antwi against Congolese veteran Paul Kamanga, and a welterweight clash between Seun Wahab and Saidi Mkola.
