Boxing

Sean said:

Saturday 25th October

Joseph Parker vs Fabio Wardley
Gotta say fair play to both fighters for taking this one as they dont have to and as both are interim champions (Parker - WBO and Wardley - WBA) they're putting their position for a chance at Uysk on the line so as far as im concerned both should be applauded for that whatever the outcome. Parker (39 Fights - 36 Wins (24 KOs) - 3 Losses) arrives in fine form and on a bit of a roll and is deservedly the favourite going into this considering his experience and skill compared to Wardleys , he last loss back in 2022 when stopped by Joe Joyce (first and only time hes been stopped in the pro's) , since then he has beaten Jack Massey , Faiga Opelu , Simon Kean , Deontay Wilder , Zhilei Zhang and Martin Bakole .. alot of people have made alot of noise about the run hes currently on especially the last three names on the list but in all honesty though its a good run with some decent names on there you can pick holes in it , the first three on the list in all fairness aint in the same class as Parker .. Ive never rated Wilder , yes he has that one punch power but thats it , he has nothing else and since the Helenius win hes looked a shell of his former self lets be honest , and aside from his last time out win against Tyrell Herndon he hasnt really looked comfortable pulling the trigger , so what can be read into the win i dunno , not alot i would suggest .. Zhilei Zhang , again he can bang , and he did dropping Parker twice but failing to capatalise on it which allowed Parker to get back into the fight and outbox Zhang , added to that after the early rounds Zhangs gas tank empties , so again how much can be read into that win ? .. and lastly Bakole , again a puncher but one who came in grossly overweight and not match fit at the last minute and Parker duly despatched him .. so for me although he did what he had to do i think all the 'new improved Parker etc ..' hyperbole is a bit OTT , whilst hes done well since that Joyce defeat and looked good lets not get carried away .. He now faces a young , unbeaten and hungry fighter in Wardley (20 Fights - 19 Wins (18 KOs) - 1 Draw) who , if he has Parker in trouble , wont be letting him off the hook like Zhang did .. hes won his last two fights since the Clarke draw , first one in devastating fashion when he stopped Frazier Clarke in the first round (after their previous draw) and then he stopped Justis Huni in the tenth after being outboxed and dominated basically .. The only time he has gone the distance is in his first fight with Frazier Clarke which was a closely fought bout and i thought a draw was a fair decision to be honest and in his debut fight in a four rounder .. his journey from white collar boxing to a possible tilt at the undisputed heavyweight titles is nothing short of remarkable lets be honest and i really would love to see him do it , wouldnt we all ? .. But i think hes gonna have his work cut out tbh , Parkers confident and has been around the top tier of boxing for quite a while now , skill wise hes definatley levels above Wardley imo as is his ring IQ and he usually has a solid game plan to work from which seems to work for him as he / his team obviously pay close attention to the opponents and their strengths and weaknesses .. Wardley definatley seems to be lacking in his defence , and he leaves his hands low at times which is dangerous against someone who can bang , and he seems to struggle with boxers with fast feet / movement .. but he does have that get outta jail power which has helped him numerous times so you definatley cant write his chances off , and although he caught Huni after being thoroughly outboxed i really cant see that happening with Parker , hes too switched on to let his guard down i think .. but i do feel that he has to stay switched on for the full twelve (if it goes that far) or he could pay the price .. hes definatley gonna have to box Wardley as if he tries to outmuscle / out power him it could go the way of the Joe Joyce fight i reckon , but then although Wardley has shown heart and resilience in some of his fights hes yet to come up against a real heavy hitter , i wouldnt necessarily call Parker a heavy hitter but he can definatley bang a bit and Wardleys nose could well open up again after that nasty gash in the Clarke fight. Wardley seems to have problems fighting off the backfoot , so if Parker can be on the offensive then he can stop Wardley loading up , and i can see him causing Wardley all sorts of problems especially if he can get him on the ropes. Another thing about Parker is that hes good at stealing rounds , when theres not much going on he'll use his jab to good effect and use his movement which helps with the points if it goes to a decision. On paper Parker should be winning this , either by a tidy unanimous decision or possibly by a mid to late stoppage but i just cant help thinking that Wardley can do this and carry on his unbeaten run .. and i keep thinking that Dillion Whyte is close to the Wardley camp and who beat Parker ? , admittedly a while ago but he can still offer him some sound advice on the matter i think .. i dunno my head is saying Parker but my heart is saying Wardley but on this occasion im gonna go with my head but i gotta say that i'll be rooting for Wardley and dont mind if i get it wrong !
Joseph Parker To Win

Other Fights On The Card
Arnie Dawson vs Mitchell Smith - Should be a decent bout this one , Dawson is undefeated whilst Smith only has the one defeat on his record to date .. both have 50% Ko rations and both are decent boxers , im slightly favouring Dawson as hes fresh and active , this will be his fourth fight of the year whilst this will be Smiths second fight of the year but he has been very inactive , since his loss to George Jupp back in 2015 hes only had five fights .. one in 2016 , one in 2017 , one in 2022 , another in 2024 and then the one earlier in the year .. im not sure of the reason but i would like to see him alot more active than he has been.
Arnie Dawson To Win

Danny Quartermaine vs Royston Barney Smith - Going for Barney Smith in this one , looked good so far and i think he'll take his record to 15-0 , Quartermaine wont be a pushover and it might take a round or two for Barney Smith to figure him out but he'll get there.
Royston Barney Smith To Win

Jurgen Uldedaj vs Rolly Lambert - Can see this one being a very mediocre fight tbh , think the Albanian Uldedaj will take the win but from what ive seen of the pair so far i dont expect an exciting fight , i hope im wrong but i cant see it.
Jurgen Uldedaj To Win

Ezra Taylor vs Steed Woodhall - Gotta say disappointed that Lewis Edmondson pulled out of the fight as i was really looking forward to seeing him and Taylor going at it but it is what it is and fair play to Woodhall for stepping up to the plate on late notice. Cant see past a Taylor win here , probably by a stoppage and very probably before the 6/7th round. Nothing against Woodhall he'll fight anyone anytime , as shown by his willingness to step in here and hes faced some decent opposition in the past but Taylor looks a decent prospect and i expect him to the job here.
Ezra Taylor To Win

Jimmydean Wood vs Artjom Spartar - Cant see past a Wood win here , should be too good for his Estonian opponent.
Jimmydean Wood To Win

George Crotty vs Bahadur Karami - Crotty should be making it 5-0 in this one , cant see his Iranian born opponent posing too many problems for him if im being honest.
George Crotty To Win

Zayn Ahmed vs Engel Gomez - Pro debutant Ahmed had a decent amateur record 18 wins and 4 losses and i think he should be making a winning debut here , his Nicaraguan opponent has lost his last six fights though just before that he did beat debutant Rory O'Hara causing a bit of a shock , but i think that was a one off tbh so im gonna go with a Ahmed win.
Zayn Ahmed To Win

Anton Esson vs Jordan Ellison - Esson hasnt looked too bad in his four fights to date , and i think he'll prove to good for the North East lad.
Anton Esson To Win

Tony Curtis vs Lakshmy Zaragoza Contreras - Sarf Londons Curtis should have too much for the Mexican lad i think , although you cant write of Mexicans as they do have a habit of upsetting the odds at times but i really cant see that happening here tbh.
Tony Curtis To Win

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