For former WBO heavyweight champion and current WBO interim champ Joseph Parker, fighting just once a year is not enough. The 33-year-old, who had to wait months before getting the fight he has coming up, this against Fabio Wardley on October 25th, last boxed in February.
One Fight a Year? Not for Joe
Parker saw a big fight with Daniel Dubois fall through, this through no fault of his own, and he has been waiting for his shot at Oleksandr Usyk for some time.
Now, with Usyk currently out with an injury, with the 38-year-old’s next move uncertain at this point in time, Parker is looking at taking another fight before the end of the year after he does what he feels he will do, and that’s beat Wardley in London.
Speaking with The Ring, Parker says he will beat Wardley and then be ready to go again before the end of 2025. And Parker, 36-3(24) says he’d be willing to fight red-hot, avoided heavyweight star-in-the-making Moses Itauma in December, this less than two months after his fight with Wardley.
“Fighting once a year is not good enough,” Parker said. “I want to fight as often as I can and if all goes well with Wardley on October 25, put me in the ring again at the end of the year. [Moses Itauma] would be another fight that I would love to take. I’ll take any fight. I’m not even in this boxing game to be taking my time and picking fights to fight. I will take any fight there is.”
How can any fight fan not like and admire Joseph Parker! Throughout his career, the New Zealander has shown he is indeed willing to fight anyone, that picking and choosing is not his way. Case in point, Parker agreeing to risk his lofty ranking against Wardley, when he could have sat and waited for his earned shot at the WBO belt.
December Ambition: Twice in 7 Weeks
Now, Parker says he’ll fight Itauma, a sensational talent who some fighters have reportedly been pricing themselves out of fighting. There is still no official word on who Itauma will fight in his scheduled December 13 fight (with British warhorse Derek Chisora to co-feature in the card, also against TBA) – but now Parker, by saying what he has said, has no doubt given Frank Warren and the rest of Team-Itauma something to think about. Might Parker be too tough, too experienced, and too strong and powerful for Itauma at this stage? Wouldn’t it be fun finding out!
“I’ll fight everyone and anyone,” Parker repeated. “Listen, he’s (Itauma) a big threat. He’s a very talented young fighter who’s just dominating whoever’s in front of him, so of course everyone’s going to be asking for big money. But if it can happen, it will happen.”
First things first, and let’s see how Parker gets on with Wardley, 19-0-1(18). Something tells me that this fight will be a hard slog for both men, and that whoever wins will need a decent rest afterwards. Is Parker, as much as we applaud his spirit, being unrealistic when he says he will possibly fight again, a mere seven weeks after his fight/potential war with Wardley?
Also, would Itauma, 13-0(11) agree to fight Parker next?