A fight between former WBO heavyweight champion Jospeh Parker and Filip Hrgovic makes no financial sense, according to the Kiwi’s manager David Higgins.
Croatian Hrgovic was ordered by the IBF to begin negotiations last week with Luis Ortiz for an official eliminator but the Cuban veteran withdrew after suffering a hand injury in his sixth-round knockout victory over Charles Martin on New Years Day.
Hrgovic, 29, is the IBF number three ranked contender while Parker, 30, sits at number four. Martin was the number two ranked contender before his loss to Ortiz while the top slot remained vacant.
Team Parker are more interested in a rematch against Andy Ruiz Jr 34-2 (22) after the New Zealander won a majority decision over the 32-year-old Mexican-American to claim the vacant WBO bauble five years ago.
Ruiz went on to claim the WBA, WBO and IBF straps with a shock seventh-round knockout win over Anthony Joshua 24-2 (22) in June 2019 before returning the belts in their immediate rematch six months later.
Parker is coming off a points win over warhorse Derek Chisora 32-12 (23) last month.
“Joseph has a great profile in the UK and the Asia-Pacific region. The Holy Grail is to become a draw on both sides of the Atlantic, and only few have done that. For Joseph to grow his career he should look stateside, and look for big knockouts against American fighters,” Higgins told Sky Sports.
“That gives him a worldwide reputation while he waits for his title shot. If you don’t do that? You end up like Anthony Joshua – only respected in certain parts of London. A rematch with Andy Ruiz Jr would be fantastic. Parker beat Ruiz Jr in a very close fight in New Zealand. Had it have been in America, it may have gone the other way.
“Andy wants a rematch. Fighting him in America is interested because he has a cult following among Mexican-Americans. If Parker stuck to a game plan he would beat Deontay Wilder easily. Dillian Whyte? The long-awaited Whyte rematch would be interesting.”
Parker lost a competitive decision to Whyte 28-2 (19) in July 2017. He was down twice during the fight before flooring the Brit in the final round.
A rematch against Whyte, who is expected to face WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury next, represents a more lucrative opportunity than Hrgovic.
“There is an economic problem with Hrgovic,” Higgins said. “When we built up Parker, we built a fan base in New Zealand. We funded, paying big money, to stage Parker vs Andy Ruiz Jr in New Zealand.
“Does Hrgovic have a home fan base anywhere? He has attained a high ranking but has no fan base so the money on offer is laughable for somebody like Parker.
“Also, this fight is at the back of the eliminator queue because the other belts must be sorted out. So Parker could fight Hrgovic for a payday that would barely cover his training costs, win, then sit out for a year waiting for his shot.”
