By Robert Segal: Demetrius Andrade has reportedly chosen not to take the fight with the heavy-handed Zach Parker for the interim WBO super middleweight title.
The unbeaten former two-division world champion ‘Boo Boo’ Andrade (31-0, 19 KOs) and the undefeated Parker (22-0, 16 KOs) would have battled for the interim WBO belt to become the mandatory for champion Canelo Alvarez.
Queensbury Promotions had won the purse bid for the Andrade vs. Parker fight with a winning bid of $305,000. The deadline to commit to the fight was on Wednesday, and the 34-year-old Andrade opted to pass up on the contest.
Given the hard work involved for Andrade and the little money at stake, it’s not surprising that he chose not to take it. Parker would be a tough foe for Andrade at this stage in his career, and it’s not as if a victory would guarantee him a title shot against Canelo Alvarez.
The Mexican star has never shown interest in fighting the slick defensive artist Andrade, and that’s probably not going to change, no matter who he beats. Fighting Parker for little money would be a dead end for Andrade, with nothing to gain.
John Ryder (31-5, 17 KOs) is next in line to face Zach Parker for the interim WBO 168-lb title.
BREAKING: Told that Demetrius Andrade will NOT go through with interim super middleweight title fight against Zach Parker. Deadline was Wednesday to commit to the fight, which Queensberry claimed as lone bidder ($305,000) of purse bid held last week.
— Jake Donovan (@JakeNDaBox) September 27, 2022
Should WBO order new interim fight or even a title eliminator, Parker countryman John Ryder is next contender in line.
— Jake Donovan (@JakeNDaBox) September 27, 2022
For Andrade, this is the second risky opponent that he’s chosen not to take. He recently vacated his WBO middleweight title rather than defend it against Janibek Alimkhanuly.
That’s a fight that Andrade would have had a good shot at winning, but the little money and hard work involved made it pointless to take.
Of course, Andrade choosing to vacate his WBO 160-lb title leaves him without a bargaining chip for paydays. If Andrade had held onto his WBO middleweight title and taken the fight with Janibek, he could have continued to make easy money defending the belt against mostly weak opposition.
It’s unclear what direction Andrade is going to go in. If he chooses to go the IBF, WBA, or WBC route to get a title shot at 168, it’s going to take him a long time to get in a position to challenge for a title. Andrade isn’t ranked by any of those organizations.
The only reason Andrade is currently ranked #1 by the World Boxing Organization is he used his WBO 160-lb title to be elevated to the top spot at 168. He can’t do that with the other three sanctioning bodies at 168, and it could take him years to get in a position to fight for a belt.
