Joseph Parker and his team are in talks with Joe Joyce and his team regarding a possible fight in May. Speaking with Sky Sports, David Higgins, Parker’s promoter, said how Joyce’s team have “reached out to us and said they’re going to make a written offer.”
This is a great match-up if it indeed gets over the line. Joyce, currently unbeaten at 13-0(12) is ranked #1 by the WBO, while former WBO heavyweight ruler Parker, 30-2(21) is currently ranked at #2 by the organization. Higgins said this fight is “almost a 50/50 type fight.”
“He fought Chisora and dominated him so his brand equity in the world and UK is at an all-time high,” Higgins said of his fighter. “We almost feel like it’s a hometown crowd and he’s obviously been on a lot of pay-per-view shows in the UK as well. The question is, who next? Joseph has signaled he wants to fight as soon as humanly possible. A possible opponent is Joe Joyce. Joyce is obviously ranked number one with the WBO and Parker is ranked number two. We would not take him for granted, almost a 50/50 type fight which the fans would obviously love.”
Higgins said both sides are keen on a May date and that he will now await the offer from Team-Joyce and “see what that offer looks like.”
“If we don’t think their offer stacks up then I’ll counter offer them more and we’ll control promoting it or co-promote with a third party,” Higgins added.
The business side of things apart, we fans would simply love to see this fight, as Higgins says. It is indeed a very solid match-up and a great case can be made for either man winning. Parker looked perhaps better than ever in his pounding win over Chisora, while Joyce has time and again shown a great chin. This fight would be the biggest test yet for “The Juggernaut,” however.
Maybe, in terms of pro experience, Parker holds a big enough edge to convince fans he would know too much for Joyce. Still, we can all agree this is a risky fight for both men. Credit to both warriors if this fight happens.