Dereck Chisora and Joseph Parker clash in a heavyweight pay-per-view clash in Manchester on Saturday night and it could pay to side with the Kiwi.
Parker has been beaten just twice in a 30-fight professional career and those two defeats came against British pair Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte. The New Zealander was outpointed in both of those bouts but the 29-year-old was certainly not disgraced.
Parker nullified AJ for large parts of that 2018 fight and the Kiwi could have stopped Whyte late on in their clash just a few months later.
New Trainer a Positive For Parker
It’s fair to say that Parker may not have been in the best shape, both physically and mentally in that contest with the Bodysnatcher, given that it came so soon after the defeat to Joshua.
However, the New Zealander has linked up with trainer Andy Lee in the build up to this fight and that should put him in a strong position both in terms of conditioning and tactics.
Parker has looked a little one dimensional and short of ideas at points in his career, but Lee is an excellent up-and-coming trainer and he should have devised a game plan to upset Del Boy.
The 29-year-old Parker was involved in a rather scrappy contest against fellow Kiwi Junior Fa last time out, and although that was Fa’s first real test, he gave the impression that the form of that fight will look better as the Otahuhu puncher establishes himself in the division.
Veteran Chisora No Easy Beat
Chisora has mixed it with the best in the heavyweight division and there was a lot to like about the Finchley fighter’s effort against Oleksandr Usyk last time out.
Del Boy was able to use his size and power against the skills of Usyk, who has mainly operated at cruiserweight, but that is unlikely to be as effective against the tough and rugged Parker.
Chisora’s 42-fight career reads like a who’s who of heavyweight boxing with the Finchley fighter sharing a ring with the likes of Whyte, Tyson Fury, Kubrat Pulev, Vitali Klitschko and David Haye.
However, there are a lot of miles on the 37-year-old’s clock and this fight probably represents a pay-per-view pay day rather than fueling any world title ambitions.
One thing we do know is that Chisora is a tough boxer and he has only been stopped three times in a top-level career.
It’s not impossible that Chisora could win this contest, and when his motivation is at its peak, the Londoner is a handful for any heavyweight.
However, Parker is as durable and tough as his British opponent, and the 29-year-old is the fresher fighter as well as being the boxer with more potential for improvement.
Parker may not even need an upturn on his best form to win this bout, but with Lee’s guidance the Kiwi looks good value at 8/5 to win this fight by decision.
*All odds correct at time of writing.