Parker v Joshua bout takes big step forward
JOSEPH Parker’s hopes of a world heavyweight unification clash with Anthony Joshua are brightening with the rival camps now discussing models for the size and value of the fight.
It’s a serious step forward from the posturing and name-calling of the past few weeks with Parker’s promoter David Higgins confirming he and Joshua’s British backer Eddie Hearn are getting into the ‘‘nitty-gritty’’ of what a clash between the two champions might look like.
Their contact has been more regular and certainly more meaningful over the last few days.
Parker owns the WBO belt and Joshua holds the WBA and IBF titles. American Deontay Wilder, the WBC belt holder, is the third fighter in the equation as calls for unification fights to find the true world champion intensify.
Higgins admits he and Hearn are still at odds over some crucial details but said negotiations were progressing with the Kiwi camp in the middle of a busy weekend trying to make the latest developments work. ‘‘We are debating the size of the event. We are looking at various revenue numbers and modelling up various information for the size of it,’’ Higgins told Stuff.
‘‘Eddie thinks it’s not much bigger than a voluntary, our view is that is it’s twice or triple that size because it has the credibility of unification which only happens once or twice in a decade and will capture worldwide imagination.’’
Money continues to be a sticking point though there appears to be a willingness from both sides to compromise.
‘‘There is also the matter of the percentage. Our view is if a voluntary pays 20-25 per cent and a mandatory pays 30 per cent then a world-wide unification of two unbeaten fighters both who have championship belts should pay 40 per cent to the socalled ‘B-side’.
‘‘We absolutely won’t be going much lower than that.’’
Higgins expects to be communicating with Hearn again early this week.
Parker is eager to get to REUTERS Joshua before the big-swinging Wilder, adamant the Brit is vulnerable in a matchup of their toe-to-toe styles.
Parker wants Joshua as his next fight and is ready to go to Britain in March or April.
Higgins said that sort of detail wasn’t on the table yet. ‘‘We haven’t discussed timing, we won’t do that till we have a deal in principle. If we don’t like the deal, there is no event,’’ he stressed.
Higgins is adamant the fight can be a box office hit.
‘‘It’s promotable, it’s marketable. It will be an adversarial promotion ... two young, unbeaten champions,’’ Higgins said. ‘‘Look, they may decide they make more money with 80 per cent out of a voluntary against someone else. So if it’s purely about the money, they might do that.
‘‘But unification in my view is at least twice as big and that could be reflected in the numbers.
‘‘The voluntary won’t capture public interest. The unification is a step up to real credibility. So let’s stop messing around and make the deal.’’