JOSEPH PARKER VS FABIO WARDLEY - FULL FIGHT PREVIEW AND BREAKDOWN

After a week off, big-time heavyweight boxing returns to the shores of England this weekend as former world champion Joseph Parker steps back into action against the hard-hitting, undefeated Fabio Wardley at the O2 Arena.

On paper, it’s the experienced boxer against the raw puncher — and in reality, it’s very much that.

A talented amateur, Parker built on that potential in the professional ranks and, since his debut back in 2015, he’s won a world title and claimed big victories over the likes of Andy Ruiz, Derek Chisora, and more recently, Deontay Wilder, Zhilei Zhang and Martin Bakole.

Wardley, on the other hand, is pretty much the polar opposite.

A young man who came through the white-collar scene, he had no amateur experience and just four white-collar fights before turning professional in 2017.

Since then, he’s made a name for himself as one of the most devastating punchers on the planet, with 18 stoppage victories from 20 fights — including a stunning knockout of Justis Huni in his last bout when he was well down on the cards.

So, to the fight — and it really is a tricky one to call.

The first reason why is simply down to momentum.

Both fighters are arguably in career-best form. When you get two men colliding who are both in the mindset that, right now, they’re unbeatable, it’s only going to make for a terrific fight.

The second reason is Fabio Wardley.

Why just Fabio Wardley?

Well, he has already shown on two occasions that you cannot write this young man off.

The first speed bump in his career came against Frazer Clarke, where many believed he was perhaps fortunate to get a draw.

In the rematch, he obliterated the Olympic bronze medallist inside a round. Statement made.

Then, in his next fight against the unbeaten Justis Huni, he made an even bigger statement.

Miles behind on the cards, he was on the wrong end of a bit of a schooling from the former World Amateur Championships bronze medallist.

Then, in the tenth round and in desperate need of a knockout — bang! Just like that, Huni’s lights were switched off completely by a beautifully timed overhand right from Wardley.

Deontay Wilder very much made a career out of not being the best boxer technically, but being able to finish a fight with one punch. And even though Wardley is technically better than Wilder, he’s starting to build a similar reputation.

The third reason why this fight is tricky to call is that we don’t know exactly where Parker is at.

At the moment, he’s undoubtedly in career-best form and has been since linking up full-time with Andy Lee in Dublin.

However, this will be his 40th fight as a professional. He’s boxed nearly four times the number of rounds that Wardley has and has been in far tougher fights.

Eventually, father time will catch up with him. Whether that happens in this fight seems unlikely, judging by his recent form, but it’s certainly something to bear in mind — especially against someone like Wardley.

The keys to victory, then. Both men have been hurt badly in their careers, and both carry enough power to knock each other out. They’ll just have to go about it in two completely different ways.

For Parker, it needs to be a systematic breakdown.

Use his boxing IQ, his technical prowess, his experience — everything he’s learnt from 39 professional bouts so far.

Wardley is notoriously explosive, and Parker will need to be alert from the first bell.

He needs to offset Wardley’s rhythm. Every time the Brit goes to load up, throw a feint to make him think again. Ask him more questions mentally than physically.

Justis Huni and Frazer Clarke have already drawn up the blueprint on how to beat Wardley, but again, this will be a far better version of Wardley than in those earlier fights.

If Parker keeps moving and digs hard to the body to slow Wardley down — making it easier to work off the back foot — he’s got a very big chance of having his hand raised at the end of the fight.

For Wardley, he’s got 36 minutes to land one or two massive shots.

Parker’s been stopped before, and he hit the deck twice during his victory over Zhilei Zhang, so Wardley can take plenty of confidence from that.

This isn’t a fighter with a granite chin who’d laugh off the impact of a swinging sledgehammer — this is someone who can be hurt, but who can also recover and go on to win, as we saw against Zhang.

Parker can be a bit of a slow starter, so Wardley needs to decide whether to give himself six rounds to empty the tank in the first 18 minutes, or whether to box smart and look for openings.

The longer the fight went against Huni, the more out of his depth he looked — but look what happened in the end.

That’s the sheer beauty of a fighter like Fabio Wardley: the fight’s not over until the final bell.

If he can make Parker respect his power early and force him to switch to plan A, B, or even C, he’ll put himself in pole position to win this fight.

One thing is for sure — no matter who the victor is on Saturday night, they will both be deserving of a shot at the undisputed heavyweight championship in their next fight.

Get ready for Parker vs Wardley! Two titans of the heavyweight division go head-to-head, with the winner destined for a shot at Undisputed. Saturday, October 25, live ONLY on DAZN…Don’t miss it—grab your PPV now by clicking HERE