Oleksandr Usyk vs. Joseph Parker: WBO orders undisputed champion to defend title against interim titleist
The WBO, on Thursday morning, officially ordered the undisputed heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk to defend his title against the interim champion Joseph Parker next.
The respective parties have 30 days to reach an agreement, or the WBO will proceed to an open purse bid.
Usyk is not aligned with a major promoter at this time, while Parker is represented by Frank Warren's Queensberry Promotions.
Usyk (24-0, 15 KOs) is just five days removed from his sensational KO victory over Daniel Dubois to unify the four titles. The Ukrainian, who also previously held the undisputed cruiserweight championship, owns a pair of wins over Anthony Joshua and Tyson Fury. The first Joshua victory saw Usyk capture three heavyweight belts in 2021, while the initial Fury triumph in 2024 made him the first undisputed heavyweight champion in 25 years, since Lennox Lewis in 1999.
Parker (36-3, 24 KOs) previously held the WBO heavyweight strap from 2016-18. The New Zealander, who is widely considered the best available challenger for Usyk, is on a six-fight unbeaten run that includes upsets over Deontay Wilder and Zhilei Zhang. Most recently, Parker stopped late-replacement Martin Bakole in just two rounds in February in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Crocker vs. Donovan 2 for IBF welterweight title
Eddie Hearn's Matchroom Boxing formally announced the anticipated all-Irish rematch between Lewis Crocker and Paddy Donovan for the vacant IBF welterweight title on Sept. 13 at the Windsor Park stadium in Belfast, Northern Ireland.
The pair were ordered to rematch by the IBF after the contentious ending to their first bout in March, which was an IBF final eliminator.
Donovan was controversially disqualified for flooring Crocker with a right hook after the bell sounded to signal the end of Round 8. The Limerick man, who was well on his way to victory when he was disqualified by referee Marcus McDonnell, blamed the raucous atmosphere from the sold-out SSE Arena for his failure to hear the bell. Donovan had, however, been deducted two points earlier in the bout for use of the head — the second of which was just 45 seconds before the punch after the bell.
When Jaron "Boots" Ennis announced his move to super welterweight, it opened the door for Belfast's Crocker and Donovan to square off for the vacant IBF championship. And when they do so, it will be the first time in history that two Irish boxers have contested a world title fight.
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