‘I WANT TO BE A CHAMP AGAIN’
PATRICK McKENDRY ON THE PARKER FIGHT
Abruised and battered Joseph Parker has insisted nothing changes — he wants to keep boxing for another four or five years despite his defeat to Dillian Whyte which will force him to dig deep in much less lucrative paydays for the immediate future.
His face told the story after he was knocked down twice, the first time with what appeared to be a headbutt but not treated as such, and the second time by a short left hook.
“The punch you don’t see is the punch that gets you. It was a surprise,” he said. Parker had a darkening left eye and a sore right ear. He also had a sore right shoulder.
The unanimous points decision after 12 rounds came as he put Whyte down but it wasn’t enough. But he was satisfied with the attacking nature of his performance, even if he wore more punches than in any other fight of his career.
The former WBO world heavyweight champion is also sticking with trainer Kevin Barry and promoter David Higgins as they plan a potentially difficult way back to the top.
“I’ve got a goal and I stand by that,” Parker, 26, said. “It would be great to be a two-time world champion or a unified champion. At 30 or 31, I’m out, but for now, I’ll go hard and give it everything I have.”
Asked about Barry, with whom he lives in Las Vegas, Parker said: “Our partnership is really strong. This is a fight I’ve taken on the chin.
“If I executed the plan it would have been different. I’m sticking with the team I have.”
Barry said: “I’m a little insulted to be asked that question. I can’t get in the ring and throw the punches for Joe. I give everything I have for this man. I love this man. My mission is to make him as good as he can be.
“I’m totally dedicated and devoted to Joe. We don’t just train in the gym for one hour a day. We spend the whole day together every day.”
Emotions will be running high after this loss, coming after the defeat to Anthony Joshua in April. It was a crowd-pleaser which came at the end of an entertaining card but questions will be asked about whether Parker has the hardness and drive to win against the odds.
Whyte, knocked down by a straight right from Parker in the 12th round, appeared hungrier. Before this fight he was considered to be a second-tier heavyweight. Certainly he was meaner than Parker.
A rematch is a possibility according to Higgins, and Parker said he would like one, but Whyte’s promoter Eddie Hearn was less enthusiastic, saying it wouldn’t be at the top of his list. Whyte will probably face an easier opponent before possibly having a rematch against Joshua at Wembley in April.
“Finding the right comeback opportunity won’t be hard,” Higgins said.
“I’ve soaked up the response from the public. I sat sandwiched between Eddie and Barry Hearn so I’ve been privy to their views which I won’t share now.
“He’s a human being, it’s his body so I’m not going to bother him with that stuff,” Higgins said of Parker.
“He can go home and meet his newborn baby daughter and have a rest and then we’ll analyse the options. But the good news is there are a range of solid options.”
The crowd of 18,000 applauded both men afterwards. Parker won plaudits for the way he fought back and also his graciousness in defeat. A win was supposed to catapult him back to the top three in the world.
“We had a great game plan but I felt I didn’t follow the plan that Kev put in place.
“There were a few mistakes. I feel when you have a fighter who was hungry and had a will to win, it can be quite difficult to execute that plan so I take full responsibility.”
Asked if he thought he might have won had there been another round, he said: “Anything could have happened but I was given 12 rounds to do what I had to do and obviously it didn’t work out.
“There are no complaints here I just have to take it on the chin and hopefully come back here again.”
The punch you don’t see is the punch that gets you. It was a surprise. Joseph Parker
For Joseph Parker, there are no excuses. And yet a headbutt from Dillian Whyte in the second round which put Parker on the canvas for the first time in his career is being seen by his camp as a significant mistake from referee Ian John Lewis, who also warned his fellow Englishman about roughhouse tactics at least four times but failed to deduct a point.
Parker was put down twice at the O2 Arena — the first in the second round and the second time in the ninth, the latter with a legal left hook.
In the third and fourth rounds, he didn’t look himself as he struggled to regain the momentum of his early successful efforts, and there is little doubt Lewis could have been stronger on Whyte for pulling down, trying to push through the ropes and pawing with an open glove.
Trainer Kevin Barry said of round two: “It was a round we were winning. It went from a 10-9 round to us to a 10-8 round to Dillian.
“The effects of that headbutt were shown in rounds three and four. Joe wasn’t himself. It wasn’t until the fifth round that I believe he got everything going again. He was actually dazed from that. And shocked when he came back to the corner.”
United Kingdom judge Steve Gray scored the fight 113-112, Frenchman Christophe Fernandez 115-110 and Australian Phil Austin 114-111.
Parker said: “The advice I was given by the team is that it was a headbutt. It surprised me and then I got back up and carried on. There are no bitter feelings from our team. We did our best. I did my best.
“Dillian came forward. I wouldn’t say he was dirty but he roughed me up and did everything he could to get the victory. He showed heart.”
Promoter David Higgins revealed Parker talked to him about the headbutt straight after the fight.
“He’s not one to talk about these things but he said the head behind the ear shook his balance and equilibrium,” Higgins said. “To me, something didn’t seem quite right. There are no excuses. Dillian came in as a bully and was tough. For Joe to hang in there and to nearly win it at the end . . . we may have won it had we had another minute. It’s a bittersweet and brutal sport.”
Barry said Whyte should have had several points deducted.
“I’m a little pissed actually. I talked to Ian about it before the fight. I said ‘look, we’re not after any favours. We’ve had a rough time from the officials but let’s make it a fair fight.’
“I said ‘we know this guy is going to punch after the bell and hit Joe in the back of the head — what are you going to do about it?’ He said . . . ‘I’ll caution him and take points off him.’ I said ‘really?’
“We know he’s a dirty fighter and those are his tactics. They worked for him. Of course he should have had points deducted — 100 per cent.”
Whyte’s promoter Eddie Hearn said: “It was a left hook and then a headbutt.”
When challenged on it, Whyte was in no doubt it was a legal punch.
“You’re not cheating me, you’re cheating yourself, my friend,” he told his questioner.
The drama comes after the controversy of Parker’s fight against Joshua in April when the Italian referee refused to let the pair engage on the inside.