Joseph Parker v Fabio Wardley: Kiwi heavyweight set to face undefeated British prospect in London

Joseph Parker celebrates his knockout win over Martin Bakole. Photo / Matchroom Boxing.

Joseph Parker is set to headline London’s O2 Arena against undefeated British prospect Fabio Wardley in October.

Parker has been in a frustrating state of limbo while waiting on boxing’s governing bodies to determine whether he will get his chance to challenge Ukrainian kingpin Oleksandr Usyk for the coveted undisputed status.

Usyk holds the IBF, WBO, WBC and IBO world titles after his last definitive knockout victory over Daniel Dubois in July improved his record to 24-0 and confirmed his pedigree as the dominant force of this generation.

Parker remains the mandatory challenger for the WBO title but Usyk has since been granted an extension in nonexistent negotiations after citing a back injury.

Rather than sit idle and wait for the WBO to strip Usyk of that title because of his reluctance to fight Parker in favour of seeking a larger payday, the Kiwi has instead accepted a lucrative offer to square off against the 19-0-1 Wardley on October 25.

The contract between Parker and Wardley is yet to be signed off but an official announcement from Frank Warren’s Queensberry promotions is expected in London next week.

The fight will be for Parker’s WBO interim and Wardley’s WBC interim titles.

While the big punching Wardley is a risky proposition for Parker, given his prime positioning among the elite world heavyweights, he also needs to stay active.

Parker has fought two rounds – in his eye-catching knockout of Martin Bakole earlier this year – since defeating Chinese powerhouse Zhilei Zhang in March, 2024.

Riding a six-fight winning run, Parker will be confident of continuing his form against Wardley to maintain his claims to fight Usyk or claim the vacant WBO title.

Wardley, in his last outing in June, was down on points against Australian heavyweight Justis Huni before rallying in the 10th round to land the knockout blow.

Prior to that fight Wardley battled to a split decision draw against British rival Frazer Clarke before flooring him with a devastating knockout in their rematch.

Parker boasts superior skill and experience but will need to be wary of Wardley’s one punch power, having stopped 18 of his 19 opponents.

But after countering noted power punchers Deontay Wilder, Zhang and Bakole, Parker and trainer Andy Lee will be confident of executing a similar blueprint to further enhance their push for another title shot.

Liam Napier is a Senior Sports Journalist and Rugby Correspondent for the New Zealand Herald. He is a co-host of the Rugby Direct podcast.