Joseph Parker has shocked the world.
Stepping into the squared circle eight weeks removed from this third-round knockout against Simon Kean to capture the vacant IBF and WBO Inter-Continental heavyweight titles, the Kiwi scored the biggest win of his boxing career, besting knockout artist Deontay Wilder after 12 rounds of dominance.
It was clear from the get-go that Wilder’s game plan was to counter, looking for the big right hand against Parker.
Parker had a similar game plan, looking to land his own right hand. But the New Zealand native was much more effective at mixing up his strikes, attacking Wilder upstairs and down with the jab and rendering Wilder’s signature power powerless by putting the big man on his backfoot throughout the 36-minute affair.
In the eighth round, Parker nearly put Wilder away with a nasty overhand right that caught ‘The Bronze Bomber‘ flush. Parker looked to end things early with a flurry of strikes, but Wilder managed to hang on, narrowly escaping the round with his chin intact.
Clearly down on the scorecards, Wilder attempted to let his hands go in the final round, but by then, Parker had already figured out how to defend his singular attack and largely clinched his way to what would be a certain victory.
Official Result: Joseph Parker def. Deontay Wilder via unanimous decision (118-111, 118-110, 120-108)