Joseph Parker has been among one of the top heavyweight contenders in boxing for the better part of the last half decade.
Parker (30-2, 21 KOs) held the WBO heavyweight title from 2016 when he beat Andy Ruiz Jr. until 2018 when he lost a decision to Anthony Joshua.
After suffering the first loss of his career to Joshua, Parker did not fare much better in the ensuing timeout, also losing a decision to Dillian Whyte.
However, Parker has bounced back in recent years, most recently with back-to-back wins against tough challenger Derek Chisora, and now the 30-year-old is poised for another breakthrough when he takes on Joe Joyce (14-0, 13 KOs) on September 24 at the Manchester Arena in the United Kingdom.
“It’s the first press conference I’ve participated in that’s pretty fierce. It’s usually pretty calm and everyone is respectful, but because this fight took so long, there are a lot of frustrations in the air,” Parker told talkSPORT.
“I support myself 100% in this fight. I’m going to have a great camp. How am I going to beat Joe Joyce? I’m going to take it down. They said, ‘what if you land a hit that doesn’t affect it?’ I said, ‘listen, even if I take one or 10, I’m going to break him in the body and head and get him out of there.’ There are plans for him to get me out of there too, but we are both very durable and have good chins.
“I think I have a very good engine too. So I’m very excited about this challenge. I see it as a great challenge. He’s a great fighter and has accomplished a lot with a good amateur pedigree behind him, but I’m still here. I’m going to give everything I have, and I think I belong at the top.”
Parker’s promises will be tough to keep in what appears to be a coin toss matchup on paper.
Joyce has looked solid in his last three bouts since November 2020, as the 36-year-old has knocked out Daniel Dubois, Carlos Takam and Christian Hammer.
Joyce, the 2016 Olympic silver medalist, also has wins over Bermane Stiverne and Bryant Jennings.
Manouk Akopyan is a sports journalist, writer and television reporter. He is also a member of the Boxing Writers Association of America and the MMA Journalists Association. He can be reached on Twitter, Instagram, LinkedIn and YouTube at @ManoukAkopyan, by email at manouk[dot]collect[at]gmail.com or at www.ManoukAkopyan.com.
