Losing that Sebastian Fundora vs Keith Thurman card is a blow, but that would have taken place this weekend, and it has been a disappointing run since the Terence Crawford vs Canelo Alvarez.
A big Heavyweight Fight leads the way this weekend, although being placed on a Pay-Per-View platform is almost hilarious considering we have only been hearing how PPV is dying... That from the channel who are placing the Parker-Wardley card on Pay-Per-View of course.
It is laughable- the card is nowhere near the level that would be expected, and there are at least two PPV offerings in November and likely more in December. Some cards- the November 22nd card for example- are worthy of that extra price tag, but there are more and more that are not reaching the level that would be expected and you can understand the frustration of the fans and even some in the media.
As often as you hear new stakeholders speak about the changes they want to see in Boxing, the more things seemingly stay the same and the fans are asked to keep digging into the pockets.
And has been mentioned in the last couple of threads, you can sign up with a number of sites through the links attached for Bet365, Bovada and Bodog.
Joseph Parker vs Fabio Wardley
Oleksandr Usyk can do what he likes as the Undisputed Champion, but two highly Ranked Heavyweights refuse to wait around and wonder if they will be given the opportunity to fight for the Undisputed Title.
Instead the credit has to be given to both Joseph Parker and Fabio Wardley to face one another in London on Saturday night and try and eliminate options around Usyk.
Some have felt Joseph Parker has already put together a strong enough resume since his defeat to Joe Joyce to 'deserve' a shot at Undisputed, but Oleksandr Usyk has mowed through his main rivals and so has been given the leeway to make his own choices.
Personally the feeling has been that Parker has been matched up really well- it is a shame the fight with Daniel Dubois was cancelled earlier this year as it would have been a real 'prove it' moment for the New Zealander. He has been in good form, but Joseph Parker cannot really say his claim is much clearer than say an Agit Kabayel, who has perhaps had the stronger wins.
Perhaps that is being harsh on Joseph Parker, but this is another fight where he should be the clear favourite.
Fabio Wardley deserves so much respect for his professional career considering the lack of amateur experience and he has continued to climb the levels, but this is a fighter who was being outclassed by Justis Huni in his last bout. He virtually lost every Round before finding a special punch to put the lights out pretty emphatically, but doing the same against Joseph Parker feels like it might be asking too much.
Power makes Wardley dangerous.
However, Joseph Parker has shown he can recover from taking big shots and has got off the canvas multiple times- his experience and fast hands should give him a considerable edge against this overachieving opponent.
The expectation is that Joseph Parker will not want to take too many risks early, but he can put the Rounds in the bank and just wear down Fabio Wardley.
Some thought the unbeaten British fighter might have been close to being withdrawn in that last bout, and there is every chance that Parker can turn the screw as this bout develops. This could see him wear down Fabio Wardley and Joseph Parker may be looking to put the exclamation point on any victory and a late Stoppage in favour of the former World Champion looks likely.
The undercard is pretty miserable on Saturday night, which is probably welcome news for English Premier League fans.
The chief support was expected to be a Light Heavyweight domestic clash featuring unbeaten Ezra Taylor facing once beaten Lewis Edmondson.
An injury has forced the latter from the event, but Taylor remains on the card and will be facing Steed Woodhall, who had been preparing for a fight on a smaller show.
The last time we saw Woodhall in this kind of spot, he was blitzed by Callum Simpson in two Rounds, although it has been around fifteen months since Steed Woodhall took Lerrone Richards' unbeaten record. He has some other solid domestic wins, which deserve credit, and it would be foolish for Ezra Taylor to look past a short notice opponent.
However, Taylor has shown he has plenty of early pop and this could be a chance to make a statement against an opponent who has been up and down the Divisions in recent times. His defeat earlier this year to Callum Simpson came at Super Middleweight and Steed Woodhall is someone who may look to fight fire with fire, which is where he could come unstuck before the second half of this scheduled Ten Rounder begins.
MY PICKS: Joseph Parker to Win Between 7-12 @ 3.75 Sky Bet (1 Unit)
Ezra Taylor to Win Between 1-5 @ 3.75 Sky Bet (1 Unit)
Boxing 2025: 22-62, - 33.34 Units (105 Units Staked, - 31.75% Yield)
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