Joseph Parker says he’ll have “a lot of options” for himself after he defeats Fabio Wardley in their headliner in 11 days on October 25 at the O2 Arena in London, England.
Usyk Still the Ultimate Target
WBO heavyweight champion Parker (36-3, 24 KOs) is hoping that a win over WBA interim champion Wardley (19-0-1, 18 KOs) will finally lead him to a title shot against undisputed champion Oleksandr Usyk.
There’s nothing Joseph can do to force the four-belt champion to face him if he’s not interested. Usyk has made so much money that he can pick and choose who he wants to fight in the remaining bouts before retiring.
In comparison to popular fighters like Tyson Fury and Anthony Joshua, the New Zealander Parker is not on the map. So, it’s understandable if Usyk chooses to continue to ignore Joseoh if he’s victorious in his fight against Wardley. If he can bag a trilogy match against Fury, that would be worth a fortune and a far bigger fight than Parker.
The Parker vs. Wardley fight will be streamed on DAZN PPV for $59.99 in the U.S and £24.99 in the UK.
Undercard for Parker-Wardley
- Lewis Edmondson vs. Ezra Taylor
- Danny Quartermaine vs. Royston Barney-Smith
- Mitchell Smith vs. Arnie Dawson
- Juergen Uldedaj vs. Rolly Lambert
- George Crotty vs. TBD
- Hassan Ishaq vs. TBD
- Tony Curtis Jr. vs. Larry Olivas
- Jimmydean Wood vs. Artjom Spatar
- Zayn Ahmed vs. Engel Gomez
- Anton Esson vs. TBD
“There are a lot of options out there after this fight,” Parker told Sky Sports News. “But if I don’t get past Fabio Wardley, there’s no point talking about any Moses Itauma, any Usyk, anything else.”
Itauma Fight a Future Possibility
The only big name besides Usyk for Parker to fight would be Moses Itauma. Still, it’s questionable whether Queensberry would be interested in giving the green light to the inexperienced 20-year-old to take that fight. Itauma has faced such dreadfully poor opposition throughout his short pro and amateur careers that it would be insane to let him fight Parker at this point.
“But those fights are down the line, and those fights are options once I get through this fight,” said Parker. “I feel like it’s going to be a night filled with power, speed, drama.”
Wardley’s Close Call Against Huni
If Parker can land on Wardley as often as his last opponent, Justis Huni, he’s got an excellent chance of beating him. Wardley looked terrible in the Huni fight last summer on June 7, and was trailing on all three of the judges’ scorecards before pulling out a miracle 10th-round knockout victory to save his skin.
The scores at the time of the stoppage:
- 83-88
- 82-89
- 82-89
Michael Collins has been writing about boxing since 2016, covering championship fights, rising prospects, and the business side of the sport.