By William Lloyd: Former WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker plans to be more aggressive and throw more punches in his rematch with Dereck Chisora on December 18th on DAZN at the Manchester Arena in Manchester, England.
There are a lot of improvements the 29-year-old Parker (29-2, 21 KOs) wants to make in his game from his controversial 12 round split decision win over the 37-year-old Chisora (32-11, 23 KOs) from earlier this year on May 1st in Manchester.
Parker should have dominated the fight, given how tired Chisora appeared most of the contest, but he didn’t throw enough punches and looked scared.
Chisora stunned Parker with a big shot in the first round, which made the New Zealander afraid to mix it up for the remainder of the contest.
The scores were 115-113, 116-111 for Parker, and 115-113 for Chisora. Many boxing fans were angry afterward, feeling that Chisora had done enough to get the nod. Indeed, Chisora looked like he wanted it more and was the one forcing the fight.
It’s going to be fun to see which of these two heavyweights come out on top on December 18th. What you can say is that if Chisora doesn’t improve his cardio from the previous fight, he could be at risk of being stopped by Parker.
Chisora looked like he needed oxygen in every round of the fight, and it appeared that he wasn’t well trained for a fast-paced battle.
Parker looking forward to Chisora rematch
“I’m looking forward to the challenge of fighting Chisora again in a rematch,” said Joseph Parker to Pro Boxing Fans. “It was different from any other fight I’ve had because we were all stuck in a bubble in the same hotel. Wherever you go to, you run into your opponent. It was a good fight, and it was very close, and I’m very happy I got the win.
“He [Chisora] put it on in the beginning, and I was moving around, and he caught me with a good shot at the beginning at right at the start of the fight,” said Parker.
“Derek is one of those fighters that is very tough, he comes forward and throws big bombs, and he never gives up until the very end. I thought it was a close fight, but when I watched it back, I thought I won the fight clean,” Parker said of Chisora.
“A lot of people thought it was close and felt he won or I won. It’ll be good to run it back and see who is actually going to get it this time.
“He [Chisora] is probably the most pressure fighter I’ve ever been in the ring with,” said Parker. “I’ve had Dillian Whyte, Andy Ruiz, but Chisora, he just comes forward, and you have to give him a big one to get him to stop, but he just keeps going forward and doesn’t stop. That makes for an exciting fight,” Parker said.
If Parker puts in a similar performance as last time, he’ll lose to Chisora because he looked terrible.
You’ve got to assume Chisora will be improved from last time and will have the conditioning to fight hard for a full three minutes of each round.
Parker wants to throw more punches
“You can’t just move around. You have to take risks and mix it up. We showed glimpses of it in the first fight, and hopefully, in the second fight, we can show a lot more.
“I feel like what we’re working on now is a very similar game plan, but it’s going to be. And I have to get in and throw more punches and be more aggressive. I can say it, but until the fight happens, I have to show it.
“He’s got a new trainer and has been training hard since the fight. And he’s fit; he’s strong and ready to go,” said Parker of the 37-year-old Chisora. “I’m not sure if he’s going to be nice before the fight, and I’m not sure what he’s going to bring. I’m just going to be focusing on myself.
“I feel it’s a lot better than the first,” said Parker about his coach Andy Lee. “The first one [training camp] was getting the introduction and getting to know a different style.
“So, I feel with this second camp, everything is flowing a lot better and a lot quicker than it did in the first camp. I’m excited to put in the world and see what the results are fight time,” Parker said of his rematch with Chisora.
Parker looked like he could throw a lot of punches against Chisora, but he looked afraid to let his hands go for fear of being clipped again.
After the first round, Parker went into his shell and never emerged. Parker would land some nice shots from time to time, but for the most part, it was Chisora taking the fight to him.
Joseph NOT in Fury’s plans
“I’ve said many times I want to knock somebody out, which is what I want to do, but I haven’t landed that clean shot to get the knockout. I just have to go in there and do my thing, have fun and get the work done,” said Parker about his match with Chisora.
“We’re very close, but I’m not in his plans,” said Parker when asked if he believes he’ll ever challenge WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury for his title.
“Tyson already has a plan of fights he wants and fighters he wants to be in the ring with, and I’m not one of them.
“We are very close, and he’s helped me out a lot in recent time in connecting me with Andy [Lee], giving me a house to stay in, and helping me in my last camp.
“I’m just not in his plans for a fighter to fight,” said Parker about Fury not planning on fighting him in the future.
Tyson Fury will likely wrap up his career after two or three fights against Dillian Whyte, Anthony Joshua vs. Oleksandr Usyk II winner, and possibly someone like Andy Ruiz Jr.
Fury will make so much money from taking on the Joshua-Usyk 2 winner that it’s going to be difficult for him to find the motivation to continue.
If Parker could regenerate his career, he would have a slight chance of getting a fight with Fury, but the cards don’t look like they’re going to fall that way.
Parker looks like he’s lost hand speed due to aging the wear & tear of a nine-year professional career, and he seems timid now, afraid to get hit.
Looking the way Parker did in his last fight against Chisora, he’s not going to get a chance to fight Fury, Joshua, or Usyk.
If Parker is ordered to fight in a title eliminator against a young, relevant quality heavyweight like Frank Sanchez, he’ll probably lose.
