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Dillian Whyte v Joseph Parker Preview

Neill Simpson 27 th July 2018

We’ve got a good card of boxing to look forward to on Saturday night headlined by Dillian Whyte v Joseph Parker. Whether it’s Box Office good seeing as there’s no title at stake is another matter but personally speaking I think there’s enough going on to make it worth investing in, or at least finding a pub that will show it for you.

The Main Event

The bigger issue than this being pay-per-view is why these two are fighting each other at all. The answer of course is boxing politics. I’m more than confident that both of these guys would beat Deontay Wilder so in a fair world one of them should be taking him on instead. However, there’s no way Wilder will be meeting anyone who could beat him before he gets his payday with Joshua next year which is a shame.

As for the winner between these two it really is tough to call. They both have Anthony Joshua in common, both losing, but Whyte was stopped whereas Parker lost on points. Both came out of those fights with credit though. Parker was a bit slicker than I thought he would be and took some decent shots too. He benefitted from not being as ‘musclebound’ as AJ and deserved to go the distance without quite threatening to win.

Whyte of course put Joshua down as an amateur and threatened to do it again as a pro but ultimately came up slightly short. Fitness was one of the issues there with Whyte carrying a bit of timber and that may prove the difference again. Literally anything could happen with two heavyweights in action but from a betting point of view I’m going to split my stake. I’m going for Whyte to win in any of the first four rounds and Parker to win in any of the last four. This gives approximately a 5/1 return should it come in and it fits the narrative based on their respective fights with Anthony Joshua.

Other Highlights

Second on the bill is Derek Chisora who went the distance with Whyte v Carlos Takam, the first man to take AJ into the championship rounds. Takam has also taken Joseph Parker the distance which makes him favourite with the bookies. That seems right to me. While I’m a big fan of Del Boy, the Whyte bout aside, it’s been six – seven years since his great fights with Vitali Klitschko and Tyson Fury, losing decisions against both. When he’s up for it he is class but it’s hard to know whether he’s interested any more.

Also of interest is the Katie Taylor fight versus Kimberley Connor. The lack of depth in women’s boxing means that Taylor has until now had it all her own way, in a similar fashion to Ronda Rousey in the UFC. We all know what happened to Rousey and it’s entirely possible that Taylor will meet her own Holly Holm at some point. It may not be on Saturday but it could be coming and at a big price too so it will be worth keeping an eye on the situation.

Frank Buglioni is making his return following a knockout defeat in March. Like the Katie Taylor fight this is more a watching brief but that defeat was his third KO and I don’t expect it to be his last. His opponent on this occasion though has been hand-picked well, a 37 year old going into only his 20th fight with no punching power to speak of.

Final mention must go to Connor Benn, son of Nigel, who has a rematch with Cedrick Peynaud following a slightly fortunate win last year. Benn was put down twice but managed to sneak the decision in a cracking bout that offers hope for an even better return fight. As Eubank Jr has let us down so far let’s hope the next gen Benn can do the business instead!

Neill Simpson 27th July 2018
Boxing Dillian Whyte Joseph Parker