Joseph Parker and Fabio Wardley face one another in London on Saturday night as the final hurdle to clear for a shot at heavyweight immortality.
Reigning and two-time undisputed champion Oleksandr Usyk is expected to face the winner of the showdown at the O2 Arena, which is nominally for Parker’s WBO interim title.
The 33-year-old New Zealander was dethroned as full WBO champion by Anthony Joshua back in March 2017 and his time at the top level looked to be at an end when Joe Joyce battered him to an 11th-round loss in September 2022.
That was early in Parker’s fruitful union with trainer Andy Lee and he has strung together six consecutive wins since the Joyce defeat, including Riyadh triumphs over Deontay Wilder, Zhilei Zhang and Martin Bakole.
If there’s a UK equivalent right now to the force Wilder once was, it’s arguably Wardley. The former white-collar boxer has blazed a trail through the professional ranks, contrary to most expectations.
Following his brutal showreel KOs of Frazer Clarke and Justis Huni, the 30-year-old Englishman is potentially just one more sledgehammer right hand away from the ultimate prize in boxing.
The Sporting News’s Dom Farrell looks at the odds for this fight and makes a final prediction.
Joseph Parker vs. Fabio Wardley odds
Per the FanDuel Sportsbook, Joseph Parker is the -410 favorite, while Fabio Wardley is the +280 underdog.
Joseph Parker vs. Fabio Wardley betting trends
Via the FanDuel Sportsbook:
- Parker via KO/TKO: +100
- Parker via decision: +190
- Wardley via KO/TKO: +400
- Wardley via decision: +950
- Draw: +1700
Joseph Parker vs. Fabio Wardley prediction
The common consensus is that Parker is too well-schooled and too much of a technical step up for Wardley.
However, the same could be said for Clarke and Huni and look what happened. Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist Clarke boxed to a draw with Wardley in their first meeting, winning the majority of the rounds but having to pick himself up off the floor in round five.
The rematch was seen as a pick ’em fight, but did not last a round, as Wardley discombobulated Clarke before scoring a sickening knockout that left his opponent with a visible jaw injury.
In his most recent outing at Portman Road in his native Ipswich, Wardley was faced with the quick feet and hands of Huni, a vastly different puzzle to the one initially presented by Jarrell Miller before the hulking American pulled out with injury.
Wardley was roundly outboxed, winning one round on two cards and two on the other by the time he drilled Huni to the canvas with an overhand right. This is where we have likeness to Wilder in his pomp: the scorecards often feel like they have little to no relevance when Wardley is in the ring.
MORE: How to bet on combat sports
It’s hard to look beyond a man of Parker’s pedigree getting the job done, but if Wardley springs the upset, it’s easy to envisage how the older man’s resurgence will be viewed. Wilder was past his best, possibly shot; Zhang was old and had painfully low output, meaning he couldn’t capitalise on flooring the Kiwi twice; Bakole came in at short notice, almost comedically overweight.
Wardley will be busier than Zhang, fitter than Bakole and far more sure of himself than latter-day Wilder. The confidence from his stunning KOs will be embossed by the knowledge that Parker was dropped by Dillian Whyte and Zhang and stopped by Joyce.
Parker prompted some raised eyebrows at Friday’s weigh-in. Both men looked in good shape, but the former WBO champion tipped the scales at 262.5 pounds. This was fractionally lighter than he was against Bakole but 17 pounds heavier than he was in the Wilder fight.
It gives Parker a 20-pound advantage over Wardley, who has settled at around the 240-pound mark since winning the British title against Nathan Gorman in November 2022. Reading too much into a heavyweight weigh-in can be a fool’s errand, but it suggests Parker is ready to meet Wardley for a tear-up when required, which theoretically gives the underdog the chance to land that life-changing blow.
Wardley’s draw with Clarke and win over Huni showed a bloody-minded competitor who would not be dissuaded by losing round after round and march fiercely back into the line of fire. The smart money says this will ultimately be his undoing against Parker in the championship rounds, but it’ll be a thrilling ride getting to that point.
Dom Farrell prediction: Parker via TKO 10 (+1800)
