Sakio Bika: If Andre Ward Wants To Fight Me, I'm Ready

Sakio Bika won the WBC super-middleweight title when he heat Marco Antonio Periban in New York on Saturday night. Bika, born in Cameroon but fighting out of Australia, won the fight on a majority decision. Two judges scored it 116-112 and 115-113 and the third called it a 114-114 draw. It was Periban’s first defeat as a professional.

Bika, who failed in three previous attempts to win a “world” title, took the vacant WBC belt after 12 hard rounds at the Barclays Centre in Brooklyn, where Adrien Broner later beat Paulie Malignaggi in the main bout.

"It means a lot," Bika said. "Periban was a very tough guy. I respect him. Like all Mexicans, he comes to fight. It was very hard to survive. I always work hard. When you are working hard, everything comes out right. If Andre Ward wants to fight me, come to my manager. I'm ready. I want to fight him. I want to fight the best."

Bika, 34, improved to 32-5 with two draws. Periban, 28, fell to 20-1 – and objected strongly after hearing the decision.