There have been few fights in heavyweight boxing this year as intriguing as Joseph Parker’s meeting with Deontay Wilder on the Day of Reckoning card in Saudi Arabia this weekend.
Two former world champions looking to continue their return to the top. It’s a bout that Parker’s former trainer Kevin Barry believes will be revealing for both fighters after the pair have worked their way back from tough defeats.
For Parker (33-3; 23 KOs), the bout is a steep step up in competition; a return to elite-level opposition after a confidence-building run this year. Coming off a knockout loss to Joe Joyce late in 2022, bouts against Jack Massey (unanimous decision), Faiga Opelu (KO 1) and Simon Kean (KO 3) have allowed the Aucklander to showcase his power and speed to quickly add another three wins to his resume.
“Boxing is a funny game. The longevity of a fighter comes down to not the fights you win but the hard fights that you lose. I look at the Joe Joyce fight that Parker had, that was a real tough war. Joe Joyce was a big undefeated guy, great motor, but not the fastest guy in the world and he was able to catch Joe a few times,” Barry told the Herald.
“There is a statement in boxing where there’s one fight in every fighter’s career where you lose a little piece of yourself and you never quite get back there again. I know that Joyce was a really tough fight and I think Joe’s team has done very, very well throughout 2023. He’s had three fights and they’ve all been safe fights. But when you’re coming off a hard loss like the Joe Joyce fight, you need to rebuild and those three opponents have been perfect.”
Wilder (43-2-1; 43 KOs) finds himself in a similar position.
The 38-year-old American has fought just once since being knocked out in the final fight of his trilogy with Tyson Fury more than two years ago. The lone fight he’s had since lasted less than a round as Wilder reminded the boxing world of his greatest asset as one shot was all it took; his right hand connecting with the chin of Robert Helenius sounding like a firecracker going off.
But, like Parker, the bout in Saudi Arabia is a step up in competition for Wilder, who has a reported date with Anthony Joshua hinging on the result of their respective bouts on Sunday.
“Look how tough the trilogy with Tyson Fury was for Deontay Wilder and at the age of 38, we know 100 per cent that those three fights for Wilder have taken a lot out of him,” Barry said.
“Wilder was down six times in those three fights, Fury was down four times. That damages both fighters. You only have to look back to other trilogies: when [Evander] Holyfield fought [Riddick] Bowe, both those guys were never, ever the same again.
“You go back to the [Muhammad] Ali - [Joe] Frazier trilogy, those guys, after the wars they had with each other, they were never the same. It takes a piece of your soul, and when we talk about Tyson Fury, well, he didn’t look that flash in his last fight with [Francis] Ngannou.”
Parker and Wilder have been linked to one another since 2017, when there were discussions of them meeting for a title unification bout - Parker held the WBO strap and Wilder the WBC. Parker ultimately went on to fight Anthony Joshua in early 2018 and lost a unanimous decision in his first career defeat.
With the bout finally coming to fruition, both fighters have been working with former opponents of their foes; Parker with Fury and Wilder with Junior Fa, who fights highly ranked Cuban heavyweight Frank Sanchez on the same card. Wilder’s coach Malik Scott is also a former sparring partner of Parker’s.
While he has been working with Fury - the only man to beat Wilder - in preparation, Parker knew he could not employ the same bullying tactics Fury used to wear Wilder down, and the reach advantage will be with the heavy-handed American.
However, what Parker did take away from working with Fury was insights into what will work for him against Wilder and how he can show the best of himself against the former WBC champion.
“The game plan going into this fight is going to be different from what he did going into his fight, but it’s always good to move around with Tyson. He’s the champion of the world, so he gave me the best work; the work that I needed to prepare for Deontay, sparring-wise. He’s always been there, which I’m very grateful for,” Parker said.
“There are a lot of things I can visualise in my head. I can go in there, fast feet, I can box him and I can move - not run away - I can put it on him, the fight will go back and forth and then I’m going to catch him with a good right hand and knock him out. That’s what I can visualise in my head. If it all goes according to plan, it will be a very good night.”
Kingdom Arena, Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Coverage begins from 5am, Sunday December 24 via DAZN.
Heavyweight: Anthony Joshua v Otto Wallin
Heavyweight: Deontay Wilder v Joseph Parker (Parker ringwalk approx. 11.15am)
Light heavyweight: Dmitrii Bivol v Lyndon Arthur
Heavyweight: Daniel Dubois v Jarrell Miller
Cruiserweight: Jai Opetaia v Ellis Zorro
Heavyweight: Arslanbek Makhmudov v Agit Kabayel
Heavyweight: Frank Sanchez v Junior Fa (Fa ringwalk approx. 5.15am)
Heavyweight: Filip Hrgovic v Mark de Mori
Christopher Reive joined the Herald sports team in 2017, bringing the same versatility to his coverage as he does to his sports viewing habits.