Esepo Signs Big Deal with Balmoral Promotions

Undefeated Nigerian lightweight champion Taiwo ‘Esepo’ Agbaje has signed a promotional deal with Balmoral Promotions. This Lagos-based company runs the Chaos in The Ring franchise. Agbaje, who has a record of 19 wins and no losses, called this deal the biggest moment of his boxing career.

Agbaje, who holds the WBA Africa lightweight title, signed the contract on Wednesday, June 10. Balmoral Promotions is known for being one of Nigeria’s most ambitious boxing promoters.

The fighter from Mushin earned his nickname on the streets of Lagos before he became a professional boxer. He said this deal gives him the platform he has been looking for throughout his career.

“I feel so good, I can’t lie. I feel good because this is the type of deal I have been looking for in my life and I believe that Balmoral Promotions is the best promotion in Nigeria. This is the line that I know if I climb, I will become a world champion because this is the space where there are many opportunities for me,” Agbaje said.

“I have been all over the world but Balmoral are set to make me a king in Nigeria so I can dictate my terms now and get what I am worth out there. This is a great deal for me.”

Balmoral's chief executive, Ezekiel Adamu, said the signing is the result of a long process. He sees Agbaje as a true example of what the promotion is trying to achieve. Adamu described Agbaje as a talented fighter with strong community roots and a real connection with ordinary Nigerians.

“Taiwo represents everything we’re trying to build here with Balmoral Promotions and Chaos in The Ring. He has talent, he’s disciplined, he’s authentic, and his deep connection with the people is actually what we’re doing. What we’re trying to do is simply build a platform that showcases him on a global level,” Adamu said.

“Taiwo is a very disciplined fighter. What happens in the ring is just 10 percent of all Taiwo is. As you can see already, Taiwo has a deep connection with the streets. The people love him, especially the ordinary people, and what we are building here is to get the sport to the ordinary people.”

Adamu stressed that this signing was not a quick decision. He mentioned that they had been following Agbaje's progress for a while.

“We didn’t just pick on Taiwo to sign him now. He’s someone we’ve been watching for a while and he’s been part of our story for a long time now. The time is just right. The people chose him. He’s the people’s champion and he’s coming to the biggest platform in the whole of Africa. It’s beautiful,” he said.

Beyond Agbaje, Adamu shared a bigger vision for Balmoral that focuses on talent development and global visibility. They plan to build a gym in Mushin, where many top Nigerian boxers come from, and the gym will be named after Agbaje.

“Balmoral Promotions and Chaos in The Ring is getting to the next phase, which is talent development, media and global visibility. Normally, a few people travel out of the country and then get their visibility. What we’re trying to build here is to get this talent to have visibility here in Africa, a factory where not just Taiwo, but different talents back to back, can have that global visibility and be paid the same amounts they would earn abroad,” Adamu said.

“We are looking to build a gym in Mushin because we know Mushin is the home of champions. We are looking to use this as a factory to bring up a lot more champions.”

The news excited Agbaje's community. People in Mushin, who have followed his rise from the streets to the boxing ring, gathered to celebrate the deal. Locals praised him for making them proud. Mothers in the area said this achievement would inspire more young people to see boxing as a real career option.

Agbaje also holds the WBF Intercontinental featherweight title and has won the Mojisola Ogunsanya Memorial Trophy for the best boxer at GOtv Boxing Night. He is now ready to pursue his goal of becoming a three-division champion in Nigeria across featherweight, super-featherweight, and lightweight. He has already reached out to the relevant authorities to make this plan official.

With his record of 19 wins and no losses, and now supported by Nigeria’s top promotion, the fighter known as Esepo is aiming for world championship glory.