Agbeko, who has observed these issues firsthand, criticized the practice of building boxers by giving them easy fights to artificially inflate their records.

He indicated that, this approach does more harm than good, as it fails to adequately prepare boxers for tougher, more competitive bouts in the future.

According to Agbeko, the focus should be on developing boxers through challenging fights that truly test their skills and readiness.

Agbeko recounted a recent experience at a boxing event in Kwahu, where he witnessed two matches that were clearly fixed.

He was particularly embarrassed because he had brought a friend from the United States, who is well-versed in the sport, to the event.

In one of the matches, which featured two well-known boxers, Agbeko was looking forward to a competitive bout.

However, to his disappointment, one of the fighters pretended to be knocked down in a manner that was clearly staged.

This incident, he said, pointed the extent of the problem in Ghanaian boxing.

Agbeko warned that, such practices are detrimental to the sport and urged stakeholders to put an end to match-fixing and focus on building boxers the right way.

Despite his achievements and contributions to the sport, Agbeko reveals that he never truly felt embraced by the Bukom boxing fraternity.

Agbeko shared that while he felt the love and support of Ghanaians at large, his own soil never fully saw him as one of their own.

He attributes this partly to his Ewe heritage, as Bukom is predominantly a Ga community.

Although he lived and grew up in Gbese, a neighbourhood within Bukom, he never received the same recognition or warmth from the locals as other boxers did.

Another possible reason, Agbeko speculated, could be his reluctance to engage in the cultural practice of “spraying” money.

Unlike some boxers who frequently return to their roots to distribute money as a show of success and gratitude, Agbeko said he rather wanted his works to be appreciated than his show of generosity.

Watch video below:

Maybe it’s because I’m a ewe or because I don’t go spray money there but the bukom community never really accepted me as a boxer – JOSEPH AGBEKO. #GameTv#RingSide pic.twitter.com/MWOFJbIfUy

— Game TV Ghana (@GameTV_gh) August 10, 2024

“I am no more Joseph Agbeko,” he said in a yet-to-be-televised Prime Take interview on JoyNews.

Agbeko, who held the IBF bantamweight title twice between 2007 and 2011, believes the name and brand Joseph Agbeko impacted society and that should be ‘treated as a legacy.’

“I think the brand Joseph Agbeko has done it all,” he explained.

“As a fighter, I gave my all to make my people happy and proud so I want Joseph Agbeko to be treated as my legacy and I want to live to see the legacy of Joseph King Kong Agbeko.

“But, from now onwards, I will like to tell the general public to address me by the name, Togbe Kalitor II, I am no more Joseph Agbeko,” the 2007 world champion stated.

“Togbe Kalitor II is my title and that is the new me,” he added.

Agbeko dethroned Luis Alberto Perez to become the new IBF bantamweight titleholder in 2007, before defending it in December 2008.

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He also held the Commonwealth bantamweight title from 2004 to 2006; the IBO bantamweight title in 2013; and challenged once for a super bantamweight world title against Abner Marez in 2013.

Prime Take airs on the JoyNews Channel every Friday at 7:10 am and Sundays at 9 PM.