Oleksandr Usyk ordered by WBO to face Andy Lee-trained Joseph Parker in mandatory heavyweight title defence
Joseph Parker celebrates his win over Zhilei Zhang and is now in line for a shot at world champion Oleksandr Usyk. Picture: Getty Images
Usyk was crowned undisputed world heavyweight champion on Saturday night after beating Daniel Dubois in a fifth-round stoppage at Wembley, sending the Briton to the canvas with a left-handed punch.
Victory secured a 24th professional win for the undefeated 38-year-old, who won back his IBF belt and added it to WBA, WBC and WBO titles.
Usyk became undisputed world heavyweight champion for a second time and in the aftermath of his win, he namechecked Derek Chisora, Tyson Fury, Anthony Joshua and Parker as potential future opponents.
On Thursday, a letter from the WBO ordered negotiations to take place between Usyk and Parker for a mandatory heavyweight title bout.
The letter added that both parties have 30 days to reach terms otherwise purse bid proceedings will be ordered.
Parker, who is trained by Limerick's former world champion Andy Lee, defended his WBO interim title in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia in February with a second-round stoppage against Martin Bakole, a late replacement for Dubois who withdrew due to illness.
The New Zealand fighter had previously held the WBO title from 2016 to 2018 and is on a six-fight winning streak since losing to Joe Joyce in 2022.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Irish Sun
10 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Oleksandr Usyk and Lennox Lewis agree in their prediction for next heavyweight world champion
LENNOX LEWIS and Oleksandr Usyk are in agreement over who will be the heavyweight division's next world champion. Advertisement 3 Lennox Lewis with undisputed heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk Credit: instagram But the masterful Ukrainian - who also beat Fury in the December rematch - only has one bout left in his career The question remains who will surpass Usyk when the two-weight and three-time undisputed champ retires. But the man himself told Itauma - still only 20 - Advertisement READ MORE IN boxing He drew comparisons to a young Mike Tyson And boxing greatness of the past and present are in agreement as Lewis echoed Usyk's assessment. He said: 'Itauma is the next coming. Advertisement Most read in Boxing 3 Moses Itauma is tipped as the next heavyweight world champion Credit: PA CASINO SPECIAL - BEST CASINO BONUSES FROM £10 DEPOSITS 'We've got a lot of heavyweights and great fighters coming out of Britain right now. Moses is definitely one of them.' Usyk, 38, has claimed he has one fight left before hanging up his gloves - and the WBO have ordered him to face Joseph Parker, 33, next. Advertisement He QUIT! Chisora | Split Decision | Usyk vs Dubois 2 fight review | Sun Sport But Fury has also called for a trilogy bout at Wembley following his two losses in Riyadh. And promoter Frank Warren said: "I would like to see the Joe Parker fight. Joe deserves it. "He's on a run himself, same as Daniel was on, and that's the fight that's been ordered. "So one way or another it will happen, or Joe will fight for the vacant title. Advertisement "Tyson has made it very clear to me; he'd love that [Usyk] fight, he would love to do that fight and it'd be a big fight." 3 Joseph Parker and Tyson Fury both want to fight Usyk next Credit: GETTY
Irish Examiner
11 hours ago
- Irish Examiner
Oscar Piastri breezes past Lando Norris to claim Belgian Grand Prix victory
Lando Norris' world championship bid was dealt a blow in Belgium after he allowed rival Oscar Piastri to breeze past him and win Sunday's rain-hit Grand Prix race. The start of the 13th round in Spa-Francorchamps was delayed by one hour and 20 minutes due to heavy rain in the Ardennes. But when it eventually got under way – following four precautionary laps behind the safety car – Norris was found wanting when a sloppy exit at the opening La Source corner provided Piastri with a race-winning opportunity too good to turn down. Despite being in Norris' spray, Piastri held his nerve and kept his foot on the accelerator at 170mph up through Eau Rouge and into Raidillon before jinking to his left and sailing clear of his McLaren team-mate on the Kemmel Straight. It was brave and superb in equal measure from Piastri but one Norris will be disappointed after seeing the his rival's championship advantage increase from nine points to 16 ahead of the final round before the summer break in Hungary next weekend. Norris crossed the line 3.4 seconds behind Piastri with Charles Leclerc third for Ferrari. Red Bull's Max Verstappen finished fourth, one place clear of Mercedes driver George Russell with Alex Albon an impressive sixth in his Williams. Lewis Hamilton started 18th and finished seventh following a string of fine moves in the early inclement conditions. .@LewisHamilton drives from the pit lane to the points in P7, amazing work! 👏 — Scuderia Ferrari HP (@ScuderiaFerrari) July 27, 2025 At one point, there were fears the race – initially pencilled in for a start time of 3pm locally – could be abandoned after it was suspended following the formation lap due to poor visibility. Verstappen described the decision as 'silly' and 'too cautious'. However, there have been 49 fatalities at this track in the last 100 years – most recently Dutch 18-year-old Dilano Van 't Hoff in 2023. And race director Rui Marques could be excused for taking that grizzly statistic into his consideration. The drivers returned to their respective garages, and as the rain lashed down, memories were cast back to the event in 2021 – one which was abandoned after only two laps behind the safety car. But the grey skies parted, the sun broke through, and at 16:20, pole-sitter Norris emerged on track, albeit behind the safety car, to huge cheers from the record-breaking crowd with 389,000 spectators over the last three days. With visibility quickly improving, the safety car peeled in after four laps, and Norris bunched up the pack before attempting to put distance between himself and Piastri. McLaren's Lando Norris leads the race with team-mate Oscar Piastri behind (Bradley Collyer/PA) The advantage was in Norris's hands with Piastri having to navigate his team-mate's spray. But a scrappy exit at La Source from the Briton provided Piastri with the momentum and he soared past Norris and into the lead. Piastri was 1.5 seconds quicker than Norris on the first racing lap leaving the Englishman – who arrived here hoping to claim a hat-trick of wins – facing a mammoth and improbable task. Further back and Hamilton, armed with a new engine, passed both Carlos Sainz and Franco Colapinto in only a handful of corners before breezing clear of Nico Hulkenberg on lap eight for 14th. That became 13th a lap later following a fine move on Pierre Gasly. On lap 11, Hamilton, who had described his Q1 elimination on Saturday as 'unacceptable', was then the first of the major players to move to the slick tyres. A slingshot manouvere on Liam Lawson in the moments after he left the pits promoted him to a net seventh when it all shook out. In came leader Piastri for dry tyres on lap 12, with Norris in on the next lap. Norris took on the hardest tyre compound – the only driver to do so – in the hope that Piastri's medium rubber would not make it to the end. But in a blow to Norris, Piastri's rubber lasted all 44 laps as he claimed his sixth win of the season – two more than the Briton – with the championship momentum swinging back to the Australian. Norris said: 'Oscar just did a good job and there is nothing more to say. He committed more through Eau Rouge and got the slipstream so there is nothing to complain about. He did a better job at the beginning and there was nothing more I could do after that point.' Piastri said: 'I knew lap one would be my best chance of winning the race. I got a good exit from the first corner and lifted as little as I dared through Eau Rouge. 'I was disappointed it was a rolling start because I thought that would take away the opportunity. But when I was that close I knew I would lift a little bit less than Lando did. It was lively up the hill, but I managed to make it stick.'
The Irish Sun
16 hours ago
- The Irish Sun
Alex Dunne claims sensational victory in chaotic Grand Prix as Irish teenage prodigy retakes F2 Championship lead
ALEX DUNNE is back on top of the F2 Championship with just five races to go after a sensational victory in a chaotic Belgian GP. The Irish teenager, 19, took a commanding win in treacherous conditions that forced the Formula 3 race to be cancelled. Advertisement 3 Alex Dunne is back on top of the Formula 2 Championship Credit: James Sutton - Formula 1/Formula Motorsport Limited via Getty Images 3 He won the Belgian Grand Prix on Sunday Credit: James Sutton - Formula 1/Formula Motorsport Limited via Getty Images 3 The race was bogged down by wet conditions Credit: James Sutton - Formula 1/Formula Motorsport Limited via Getty Images The championship standings where he holds a 15 point lead over Richard Verschoor. It was his third F2 win of the season after success in Bahrain and Imola earlier in the campaign. Disqualification from the Austrian GP led to him dropping to third in the championship but a podium finish in Silverstone and victory in Belgium saw him jump back to the top. The Offaly starlet had to demonstrate all of his immense talent to do so in a race that was plagued by wet conditions. Advertisement Read More on Alex Dunne Rain had lashed on the track on Sunday morning to the extent that the Formula 3 feature was cancelled. Alex Dunne's star has been on the rise since signing for the McLaren Driver Development Program in May 2024. In February, he joined the Rodin Motorsport F2 team and success swiftly followed. In March, he finished ninth in the sprint race in Advertisement Most read in Motorsport That landmark gave him the outright lead in the F2 Championship, a position he reclaimed with a win in Imola in May. It was not all plain sailing, however, as his involvement in an 11-car crash in Barcelona led to Alex Alex Dunne reunites with faily after Formula 1 debut at Austrian GP Dunne responded to the abuse by making a sensational Formula 1 debut, filling in for Dunne was the Advertisement He was not overawed by the occasion as he clocked the fourth fastest time, faster than the likes of Hamilton . Only Oscar Piastri were faster. He was disqualified from the F2 Austrian GP that same weekend but bounced back in style with his fifth podium of the season in Silverstone in July. The 19-year-old is not looking beyond the end of this current season, but has grand designs for what he will have accomplished. Advertisement In an "The best opportunity I am going to give myself to be an F1 driver is by winning F2. I think it is as simple as that. "If I get the opportunities to do another FP1, it will be to do the exact same thing I did in Austria but even better. "If I can continue to improve and do a good job every time I get in the car, that will help my chances." Advertisement
