So Parker will be even slower and Usyk will be more seasoned. Didn't think that one through very much, did you?
It's possible for Parker to beat Usyk... Excellent chin, and good handspeed. Depends on how well him and Andy Lee have meshed. If he manages a better performance than Usyk against Chisora it makes things more interesting. People forget that Usyk eats punches too.
If you asked me at the end-of-2016, I'd say that Parker had the quickest hands among the top HWs in the division. I would not say that now. Why/how exactly he's lost that speed so quickly is a mystery to me, but it does appear that he's lost it.
Primes vary enormously. Tyson was in his prime in his late teens-early 20's, Wlad was in his prime in his mid-late 30's and hadn't hit his prime until his early 30's. Wlad still had faster feet than AJ at 41 after a long layoff! Parker doesn't have great footspeed. Compare his performance against Chisora to Usyk's and Parker is far more stationary. Parker has little power, lacks aggression and will to win (at least against decent opposition) and has short arms. Usyk would 12-0 him and he knows it.
I'd bet that Usyk is not going to do more than 2-3 more fights. If you look at what his game is built around - it's not a game that ages as well as some others. I don't see him boxing must past his 36th birthday. So that being said...if Usyk is only going to fight a few more times..why would he bother with Parker? Parker had his shot against Joshua. He lost. His bout with Joshua wasn't particuarly exciting and Parker is from a small market. That means that no sanctioning body is going to fast-track fights for him unless he does something that really captures the interest of the larger boxing public. And Parker just hasn't done much to move the needle with boxing fans since he fought Joshua. He lost against Whyte (even if Whyte was about 30 seconds away from getting stopped by exhaustion when the fight ended) and he didn't dominate Chisora or Fa. Assuming Usyk successfully defends against Joshua - there's no reason for him to consider Parker ahead of the likes of Fury, Joyce, Hrgovic etc. There's no money in it. Parker still has a shot to climb back to the top, but he's going to have to slay a dragon or two to raise enough interest.
I agree that Parker needs better fights But out of Joyce, Hrgovic and him - he is far better known and liked in the UK than the others
Usyk's chin seems pretty good to me. Care to count how many times he's been knocked down vs. Parker? All heavyweights eat punches sooner or later. Usyk is more likely to be fed them early and do the feeding, himself, as the bout progresses. And Usyk's hands were markedly faster than Joshua in their fight. I can't explain Usyk's lackluster showing against Chisora. But I can say that Usyk definitely stepped up against Joshua. Which Parker did not do.
If I"m reading this sentence correctly, you seem to be suggesting that Parker is better known and liked in the UK than Joe Joyce. If so...I disagree. If not...sorry, my mistake. Hrgovic's own following is in Central Europe and Eurasia at the moment. Overall, I'd say it's not smaller than Parker's - but Hrgovic is not yet a big deal in the UK or the USA (except among hardcore fans). Hrgovic will likely be made to wait. Yes, Parker needs better fights. Assuming Parker beats Chisora - then I think it's possible you could have a fight made between him and Martin Bakole. Or - if Parker is willing to fight outside the UK or NZ - then a fight with Gassiev or Hrgovic. Both are risky, but both would likely have good money and good upside if he prevails. Personally, I would bet on a Bakole fight in the UK or a Demsey McKean fight in AUS/NZ.
There is a very real possibility that Parker does not get past Chisora in December, so why are we talking about a fight with a living legend? Let him settle his rivalry with heavyweight boxing's gatekeeper-to-the-stars first.
Come off it. In AJ vs Parker the ref refused to allow any inside fighting, essentially nullifying Parker (you expect him to box on the outside with someone taller and with greater reach?). Usyk has been knocked down before. I can't give you full numbers as I haven't watched all of his fights, but I believe Parker had only been knocked down 3 times in his career. I don't think Usyk can crack his chin, and I'm a big Usyk fan myself.
**** no. Parker has 0 head movement, and was beaten by Chisora. He's not remotely quick. He could barely trouble AJ and was at best level with parker. I agree Parker will likely beat Chisora this time, on his night he's good, but if we're going on previous performances, he was neck and neck with Whyte, neck and neck with Chisora probably losing, and he was outboxed by AJ who got outboxed by Usyk
