Which heavyweight has the greatest hits?
As their high stakes battle at Manchester Arena draws near, here’s how the two rivals match up between the ropes. Sam Wilson analyses how Parker and Joyce compare.
The stakes could barely be higher for Joseph Parker when he makes his longawaited return against Joe Joyce.
The Kiwi heavyweight heads into the lion’s den in Manchester next Sunday aiming to overcome the odds and hand the unbeaten Brit his first career loss.
Should he emerge victorious, Parker will secure the WBO’s interim title and move one step closer to a shot at his old belt, currently in Oleksandr Usyk’s possession.
But finding a way past the 6ft 6in, 265lb Joyce (14-0, 13 KOs) – a 2016 Olympic silver medallist – will be no easy feat, and Parker (30-2, 21 KOs) enters the contest a slight betting outsider.
Ahead of what promises to be an action-packed battle, here’s how the two big men match up between the ropes.
PRO RECORD
Having only turned pro five years ago aged 31 after a lengthy amateur career, Joyce has been moved along quickly as a pro.
He won the Commonwealth title in only his fourth fight and has taken the scalps of former
WBC champ Bermane Stiverne, David Tua’s conqueror Alexander Ustinov and former title challenger Bryant Jennings, the only man to take him the distance.
Joyce’s best victory to date came in November 2020, a 10thround upset of Daniel Dubois. His only common opponent with Parker is Carlos Takam, Joyce stopping the French-Cameroonian in six last year and Parker beating him on points in May 2016.
While Parker has chalked up 10 years in the pro ranks and boxed 201 rounds to Joyce’s 63, he is six years younger and has looked reinvigorated since teaming up with trainer Andy Lee.
Parker has also had more than double the number of fights and competed at a higher level against the likes of Anthony Joshua, Andy Ruiz Jr, Dillian Whyte and Derek Chisora, winning the WBO belt against Ruiz Jr in December 2016 and defending it twice.
There’s no doubt Parker is the most accomplished fighter that Joyce will have faced, whereas the Kiwi has been in with more esteemed competition.
Advantage: Parker
POWER
In 14 bouts, Joyce has only heard the final bell once, going the full 12 with Jennings in his 10th contest. No-one else has managed to stand up to the Englishman’s thudding power, with all but three of his opponents halted inside six rounds.
Parker, by contrast, has struggled to close the show in recent times, winning his past three fights via decision. He dropped Chisora three times last time out, but couldn’t find the finishing blow to put an exclamation point on an otherwise authoritative display.
However, Lee has got Parker punching with more authority and while not a one-punch knockout artist, he has enough pop to gradually break Joyce down and stop him.
Advantage:
Joyce
CHIN
Both Joyce and Parker have forged reputations for having jaws of steel. Indeed, the Brit has never been put down in the pro ranks, despite eating some heavy leather.
Whether all those blows have had an accumulative effect on the 36-year-old remains to be seen, but so far the ‘Juggernaut’ has proven a near immovable object.
Parker, meanwhile, has hit the deck on three occasions (twice in a contentious 2018 loss to Whyte and a flash knockdown in his first meeting with Chisora last year) yet he has always shown excellent powers of recovery.
He has never been stopped as an amateur or pro, whereas Joyce suffered that fate against Joshua and Sergey Kuzmin in 2011 and 2013, respectively.
Advantage: Joyce
JAB
The battle of the jabs looms a key battleground and one where Joyce holds the upper hand, thanks to a 10cm reach advantage (203cm to Parker’s 193cm).
Whenever he has put it to use, Joyce’s spear-like jab has been a very effective weapon. Witness his ruthless dismantling of the thenunbeaten Dubois, when he neutralised his hard-punching opponent’s power shots by peppering him with an accurate left-handed jab, marking him up and breaking his eye socket to force the stoppage.
At times, Parker and Joyce have both been guilty of neglecting their range-finder in favour of power shots, though the Kiwi used it to set up his heavy artillery
against Chisora in December.
Parker also throws his more rapidly than Joyce so may be able to overcome the reach deficit by consistently beating his rival to the punch.
But if the Brit decides to use his physical gifts to keep the smaller Parker at arm’s length, then the former champion could be in for a long and difficult night.
Advantage: Joyce
HANDSPEED AND FOOTWORK
This is one area where Parker reigns supreme over Joyce.
The Londoner has been derided for his sluggish handspeed and often looks like he’s throwing punches underwater. Yet he’s been able to find the target regularly enough to wear down adversaries through sheer volume and workrate.
Unsurprisingly for a man who tipped the scales at a hefty 120.9kg in his previous outing, Joyce isn’t particularly light on his feet and tends to plod forward in straight lines, following his prey around the ring.
Parker, on the other hand, can put together blazing combinations and his quick feet and lateral movement allow him to move in and out of range.
Joyce struggled with Jennings’ slippery style and he figures to find the similarly elusive Parker a tricky puzzle to solve.
Advantage: Parker
SIZE AND STRENGTH
Standing an imposing 198cm tall, Joyce is one of the biggest heavyweights around. He’s also as sturdy as they come, with a thick, muscular frame that enables him to absorb punishment.
The bulky Brit frequently uses his size and strength to bully his opponents on the inside, leaning on them to sap their strength. For this reason, Parker would be wise to avoid the clinch as much as possible.
Parker tipped the scales at a career-high 114kg for his rematch with Chisora and will likely come in around that mark or even heavier against the much bigger Joyce.
Under Lee’s guidance, he has shown more mongrel between the ropes having been too timid in the past. He must be prepared to fight fire with fire and respond in kind to any rough-house tactics.
Advantage: Joyce
STAMINA
There’s a reason why Joyce is known as the ‘Juggernaut’ – he has one of the best engines in the game.
His relentless, marauding style may not be easy on the eye but has proven devastatingly effective, allowing him to overwhelm opponents unable to keep him off them.
See his most recent fight against Christian Hammer in which the German had some early success on the backfoot before finally succumbing to Joyce’s constant pressure in the fourth round.
Parker is also renowned for his stamina and has gone the distance 10 times in 32 fights without too much trouble. He will need to be in prime physical condition to cope with whatever Joyce throws at him in Manchester.
Advantage: Joyce
DEFENCE
It’s a good job that Joyce has such a solid set of whiskers, since his defence leaves a lot to be desired. He is far too easy to hit and was repeatedly clipped with right hands by Hammer in July.
Taking those heavy blows on the chin eventually takes its toll and Parker hits harder and throws faster than Hammer, which doesn’t bode well for the Brit.
The New Zealander has tightened up his defence under coach Lee and he showed improved head movement in his sequel with Chisora.
He will need to be switched on against Joyce to evade those clubbing shots to the body and head.
Advantage: Parker
THE VERDICT
Make no mistake, this is the toughest assignment for Parker since that contentious loss to Whyte four years ago, but one he is more than capable of winning if he gets his game plan right.
He will need to use his superior speed and footwork to move in and out of the pocket and punish Joyce while avoiding the return fire.
A stoppage is not out of the question if he can land hard and often enough as Joyce marauds forward, though a points victory seems the more likely scenario.