The stage is on October 25 on the O2, where Joseph Parker and Fabio Wardley collide in a heavyweight fight that bears consequences or break-consequences. In Glazers Hall, the opening person conference put both men under the spotlight, but Parker’s earlier words in Camp Show where his head really is.
Frank Warren spelled it out: ‘Why is this battle so significant? Because you have two guys who don’t have to fight with each other. Both are interim champions. USYK is 90 days … If he does not fight against them, the winner can be declared champion. For the winner it will be all and for the loser it will be nothing. ‘
Parker: ‘To walk to the fire? I love the fire‘
Parker did not hold on to the press: ‘Walk towards the fire? I love the fire. I fought a lot of fighters out there who are big punchers and they couldn’t get me away, so credit to Fabio Wardley to wage this fight. ‘
But rinse again after his interviews maintenance with “The bumpy ground” And you hear the same steady mindset. On USkyk slides away: “This is the struggle I want, and it’s the struggle that makes sense, because he has all the belts. But if it’s not the fight in front of you, you just focus on the next. It was out of my control. The only thing I could control was to practice back in New Zealand.”
And why he took Wardley now instead of waiting: ‘I wanted to fight. I wanted to stay busy. I had one fight in 2024, just one this year with Martin Bakole. I need more fights. The only way to progress is by putting it all together on the night. I need a ring time. ‘
Parker doubled at the press conference: “There are levels. They do say that there are levels in boxing, and I believe with the experience I have and what I have worked on in New Zealand, I have a good base and I am excited to see what I can do in the ring.”
Wardley: “It will be a defining moment”
Wardley, unbeaten and bullish, regards it as his upcoming party. “It will be a huge moment in my career, probably a defining moment. I am committed to saying ‘big fights’ because I didn’t come here to play around. I haven’t come so far in my career to just hang and wait for things to be handed over to me. ‘
He praised Parker’s standing, but refused to play second fidget: “With Oleksandr Ulsyk tied up at the moment, there is no better participant in the section at the moment than the No.2 man Joseph Parker. People may still have reservations and question marks, so October is where I have to wipe through Joseph Parker.”
Wardley’s KO statistics did not notice. Parker acknowledged: “The most difficult puncher I have faced now because he has the highest percentage. He can do it to me, I can do it to him. Now it’s a matter of who the plan is going to execute.”
My Tasks – Parker vs. Wardley result
Credit where it owes: Frank Warren delivered a proper battle here. Two interim champions, Real Jeopardy, no hiding, no wait. In today’s heavyweight scene it is rare – and it deserves respect.
Wardley talks to a good game and he believes it. But Parker was with Joshua, Whyte, Chisora, Zhang, Wilder – The Fire Wardley coming in is hotter than anything he has seen before. Parker’s right: There are levels. Wardley has never fought on this one.
Can Fabio crack him? Natural. But Parker got the nous, the chin, the engine and the timing. If Parker controls the pace, it is his struggle to lose. My call? Parker door knocking out in the middle rounds. Too experienced, too sharp, too experienced. Wardley learns in the difficult way the levels matter.
Last updated on 09/09/2025
