Joseph Parker hopes to lock in his next fight 'very soon'
- Shidonna Raven
- 15 hours ago
- 2 min read
This Article has been curated by UDBN
September 3, 2025
Source: Boxing News
Heavyweight Joseph Parker has both a wish list and a preferred order in which to do things.
However, that doesn’t mean the New Zealander is reluctant to deviate from his plan, nor that he will wait around until his dream scenario materialises at exactly the right time.
In fact, when it comes to adjusting and going with the flow, Parker is no stranger.
Back in February, an IBF heavyweight title shot against Daniel Dubois was scrapped when Dubois, the champion, fell ill and had to withdraw during fight week. Yet, it was Parker, the dejected challenger, who was the first to say: “The show must go on.”
Many, in that same situation, would have perhaps waited for a rescheduled date for fear of losing the opportunity by fighting a replacement opponent. But no, not Parker.
Instead, Parker not only elected to still fight on the date meant for Dubois but he accepted a fight against Congo’s Martin Bakole, arguably the most avoided fighter in the division at the time.
Now, seven months on, Parker is again having to prepare himself for every eventuality.
His ideal fight is of course a shot at the world heavyweight champion, Oleksandr Usyk, for whom he is the current WBO (World Boxing Organization) mandatory challenger. But if that fight cannot be made next due to Usyk’s reported injuries, Parker is happy to keep things moving and fight somebody else.
It’s for that reason rumours of him boxing Fabio Wardley on October 25 persist.
“I’m hoping to lock in a fight very soon,” Parker confirmed in a message to Boxing Scene’s Declan Warrington on Sunday. “I’m keen to fight Usyk, but if I can’t get him, anyone in the top five or ten in the world.”
Taking into account Wardley’s recent form, and his 19-0-1 (18 KOs) record, that would presumably include him. More top ten, than top five, Wardley is a dangerous puncher whose ability to turn a fight around with one shot was never better exemplified than when he
knocked out Justis Huni in the final round of a fight he was losing in June.
Beat Wardley and Parker, 36-3 (24), stands to enhance his reputation in the division and strengthen his claim for a shot at the world heavyweight title. Yet the fight – Plan B, if you will – is not without its risk, particularly given Wardley’s punch power, and Parker, at 33, can afford few mistakes or setbacks when so close to a heavyweight title challenge.
Indeed, as Parker aims to capitalise on his purple patch, there are other men either queuing up behind him or circling around him. One of these men, Moses Itauma, is a prospect of whom big things are expected and somebody Turki Alalshikh, the Saudi Arabian financier, has said he would like to see Oleksandr Usyk fight next.
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Marcus Doggett, Chief Editor
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