Joseph Parker defied his doubters with a demolition of Martin Bakole on Saturday, after Daniel Dubois withdrew due to illness.
Dubois was due to defend the IBF heavyweight title against Parker in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, but the Briton fell ill on Thursday. As such, organisers were left scrambling for a replacement on two days’ notice.
• FOLLOW LIVE: Beterbiev and Bivol clash in rematch for undisputed light-heavyweight belts
No one would have begrudged Parker, 33, for waiting for Dubois, 27, in a rescheduled fight later this year. But the New Zealander chose to compete, with Bakole soon named as his opponent.
Bakole is often referred to as the “most-avoided” heavyweight in boxing, yet his reputation meant nothing to Parker, who not only fought the Congolese on short notice but also knocked him out – in just two rounds, no less.
Parker skimmed an overhand right hand off the top of Bakole’s head, sending the 31-year-old stumbling and lolloping to the canvas. Bakole nearly beat the referee’s count, but the official waved off the bout, sparking jubilant scenes from Parker and his team.
Parker then made clear his desire to fight for a world title next, as he was supposed to do against Dubois. However, the Kiwi specifically called out Oleksandr Usyk, the unified champion who was sat ringside in the Kingdom Arena.
If Parker can win a world title, he will become a two-time champion at the elite level, having not held such a belt since he was 26. The New Zealander dropped the WBO title to Anthony Joshua in 2018.
Parker next suffered a loss to Dillian Whyte before winning six straight fights, but his streak was halted by Joe Joyce in 2022, as he was knocked out by the veteran. Now, however, Parker has again won straight six fights, impressing with victories over Deontay Wilder and Zhilei Zhang in his last two.
In Saturday’s main event, Dmitry Bivol avenged his loss to Artur Beterbiev to take the undisputed light-heavyweight titles from his rival.
In October, Beterbiev won a narrow decision against Bivol to unify all the belts, but the latter produced an inspired showing in their rematch to win by the same result that Beterbiev scored four months ago: a majority decision. With that, 34-year-old Bivol handed Beterbiev his first loss, just as the 40-year-old did to him in October.
