Parker?

Although I agree to an extent, I think that same logic can be applied to the whole HW division of today.

AJ and Wilder both have more in the way of marketability, because of their explosive knockouts.
However, Parker is considered to be more rounded, as he is good at most things, just not really great at anything.

He has the fastest hands, but lacks the one punch power that AJ/DW have.
He has poor defence, but so do AJ and Wilder.
He has a reasonably poor gas tank, but not anywhere near as bad as Joshua.
He has reasonably poor footwork, but much better than Wilder.
He has a good chin - which you can argue is better than both AJ and Wilder.

People don't know how to rate Parker, because of the opposition he has faced since 2016. It can be argued that his opposition leading up to getting his title, is better than that of both AJ and Wilder to get theirs. But the matchmaking has been bad, as awkward opponents have made him look very beatable.

If they matched him with the likes of Brezeale, Stiverne etc, then you would see much more hype.

A jack of all trades, master of none...in a way

 

I'm more of a AJ fan than Parker but it would be incredible if he could pull off the upset.

 

Parker got KO'd brutally in sparring or peaked young?? Something changed him, Parker has declined!

 

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Parker hurt by Takam @ 2:48.

 

I hope his power has been restored by the surgery, otherwise his plan to walk down Joshua is going to go painfully wrong. If he can get AJ's attention with his power, then it's game on...

 

Parker is above average at everything but not exceptional at anything.

There has also been a clear drop off in his level in the past 3 years, compared to what we expected him to be at now.
Looks like his power has dropped off somewhat.
Perhaps he was on the PEDs earlier in his career and has come off them in recent years?
Or perhaps his natural level of T has just levelled off as he hits his mid 20s.

He is going to need to be better than he has been in the past 3 years to be competitive in there against AJ who is clearly on PEDs and training right and living the life of a professional.

 

Parker moves well for a heavyweight, he is quicker than Joshua and he has respectable power. He is also young with a good gas tank. He is also pretty experienced, having boxed since he was 5 and fighting different styles as a pro.

Parker isn't an average heavyweight; an average heavyweight doesn't beat Andy Ruiz, Carlos Takam, and Hughie Fury. I'm not sure he beats AJ but he has a chance given how flawed AJ is (which is also what makes him exciting).

I'm going with Parker by KO or AJ by decision.

 

He doesn't though

 

Got clipped and shook it off quickly. Joshua and Wilder would both swarm at that stage.

The interesting thing would be if he recovered that quick against them. They are both quite wide open when pouncing, Wilder especially.

 

Better than AJ's, that's for sure. I've never seen Parker winded after 4 rounds in any of his fights.

 

Won't matter, Parker gets hit too much and he is a come forward/offensive fighter. He will walk onto too many shots in the first 5/6 rounds and be stopped in the 7/8. He has never faced a puncher like AJ, and unless his defence dramatically improves in a week he is getting beaten up. Samoan jaw or not this is HW boxing at world level - he is getting whooped and even more so if AJ comes in leaner like we think he will.

 

You guys didn't get the memo that

Parker had TWO SURGERIES on his elbows in Nov - which had been robbing his power in recent fights.

Parker is now at FULL THROTTLE again after a great camp.

I believe Parker's SPEED and movement will be too much for AJ.

 

I certainly did not get the memo that shows that elbow surgery helps stamina and footwork.

 

Average? Stupid comment. I mean, he's beaten some of the top fighters of the division. The division that, lest we forget, would actually BEAT any other division, regardless of their asthetics. He's fairly soldily proven himself to be a top 5 HW in the best division, so calling him average, really? From resume and appearance, he appeares to be a solid but not extreme underdog to AJ. But I won't be shocked in the least if he wins