Something has to change for Parker
IF Joseph Parker fights again after losing to Dillian Whyte in a punishing bout which could leave as many mental scars as physical ones, he will have to turn the spotlight on everything he is doing.
Something has to change. Whyte has improved significantly since losing to Anthony Joshua eight fights ago. Joshua, the WBO, WBA and IBF world champion, keeps improving, and so does Deontay Wilder, who owns the WBC version.
But Parker has stayed relatively static.
He was not far away against Whyte. He won the first round easily and would have won the second but for the headbutt which dropped him and cost him that round and probably the next two as he tried to recover.
And in the 12th round, Whyte was in serious trouble with 15 seconds to go after being dropped by a straight right — the first time in a long time that Parker has seriously hurt an opponent.
But Whyte (30) used his ring craft and bulk to smother Parker against the ropes and the chance was gone.
Another 20 seconds in the round and Parker could have won the fight by stoppage and what an achievement that would have been.
Dereck Chisora, a heavyweight rival who stopped Carlos Takam with two stunning right hands in the eighth round of an extremely entertaining main undercard fight, doubts Parker will be back.
The Englishman, who incidentally hates Whyte with a passion and lost to him two years ago, said he did not think the Kiwi had the hunger to keep training after making many millions of dollars in his past two defeats.
‘‘He’s a fighter but when he chucks his jab his hands are down. He was not motivated for this fight. I think when he made money from the AJ [Anthony Joshua] fight he forgot boxing, basically. He wasn’t the same guy.
‘‘The things he did in the AJ fight he didn’t do in there. He was in great shape but he didn’t have it. Parker won’t be fighting again.’’
Promoter Eddie Hearn sitting alongside Chisora, agreed. ‘‘The 12th round kind of saved him,’’ he said. ‘‘Another 30 seconds and he might have had Whyte so he left the fight on a high. People will be saying ‘we want Parker back’ but will you want to drop down the money? It’s all about hunger and I don’t know him well enough to comment.’’
Who is next if he does fight again? Hearn threw unbeaten American Jarrell Miller, who has a 210 professional into the mix, but Miller would be a step too far at this rebuilding stage.
Maybe Parker needs to fight in New Zealand in front of a familiar crowd again. He has raised his profile in the United Kingdom during his last three bouts but he has won only one — a nervy decision in a horrible matchup against Hughie Fury in September.
What about Australian Lucas Browne, who was knocked out by Whyte in March? Browne is not on Parker’s level but would still carry an element of risk and the transtasman element would help the promotion.
Or what about KiwiTongan Junior Fa, a man with whom Parker has a strong rivalry going back to their amateur days in south Auckland. Fa is now ranked No 12 by the WBO and a win over him would lift Parker’s standing with that organisation.
It would be a big domestic scrap and these two are destined to fight at some stage. Maybe this loss has pushed it forward. Either way, there are big decisions to make for Parker and his team. — NZME