The delay in the Joseph Parker versus Junior Fa fight will only work in the favour of the former WBO heavyweight champion, according to his manager David Higgins.
Parker 27-2 (21) was set to clash with old amateur rival Fa 19-0 (10) in Auckland, New Zealand on December 11 before Fa withdrew with an unspecified injury. The fight is expected to be rescheduled for early next year.
“We were all frustrated at Covid and he will have been out of action for nearly a year by the time the fight happens,” Higgins told Stuff.
“I just have to look at that example of what David Tua did with Shane Cameron after a long build-up. As Joseph Parker’s manager, not the promoter from this event, I’m hoping that he unleashes a similar fury when the event does happen.”
Fa’s manager Mark Keddell said his fighter would have surgery on Tuesday but refused to disclose the specific nature of the injury. He is expected to require four weeks to recover.
“We’re devastated because Junior is in amazing shape,” Keddell said to Stuff. “He’s very powerful, very fit and we recognised an issue that coincided with a routine blood test that showed something that wasn’t very good and we had to fix it.”
Under the terms of the contract the bout can be delayed due to an injury or the impact of Covid-19.
“Joseph Parker wants to fight Junior Fa, Junior Fa wants to fight Joseph Parker,” Higgins added.
“Parker’s ranked number three (in the WBO), Fa is number six. It makes perfect sense that they’re on a collision course and the key thing is they’re going to collide at peak fitness.
“So there’s no question about the event happening, we’re just going to have to be patient and wait a little bit longer.”
Meanwhile, Fa’s trainer Eugene Bareman has accused the Parker camp of not taking the fight seriously.
“One thing we’ve been reminded of is that this is 100 percent the ‘Higgins Show’,” says Bareman told Newshub. “It’s all cool up here, but it’s a shit fight backstage.
“David [Higgins] experienced this when he took Parker to fight [Anthony] Joshua. He had Eddie Hearn on his arse and now he’s paying it back to us, making us work hard for everything. We lose the main advantage we had. They were not taking this fight seriously and you know that because [trainer] Kevin Barry took his time coming back.
“We were already training for four weeks before they decided to start. My gym at City Kickboxing, we run these streets. If you’re partying with celebrities or scumbags, we will know about it. These guys are from Vegas, we run the streets.
“If they are not taking the fight seriously, we will know about it. This is a fight and it’s going to get nasty. I have respect for Joseph and Kevin. I like them, but at the same time, stuff those guys – they can kiss my arse.”
Unsurprisingly, Barry refuted those claims.
“At the age of 24, when he became the fourth-youngest WBO heavyweight champion, we did not take anything for granted,” Barry said.
“We didn’t take any opponent lightly and I can promise, with my hand on my heart, that we are not taking the fight lightly. I can’t control what other people think or say. I can control what I say, I can promise you this is the fight we are taking very, very seriously.
“The stakes couldn’t be higher for us. If we don’t get this fight right, it’s going to be a long time before Joseph gets back in the mix to fight for the world title.
“Junior is sixth in the world and unbeaten. Joseph is 27 and has fought some of the biggest names in boxing, but at the age of 28, Joe is starting to come into his prime.”
