Fabio Wardley has done it again. Behind on points and with the fight seemingly slipping away, the British heavyweight once more found the magic ingredient in his power to turn everything around and emerge victorious. At London’s O2 Arena, pre-fight favorite Joseph Parker was stopped by referee Howard Foster in the eleventh round. The TKO — a rather controversial one — ended the bout while the official scorecards read 98–92 for Parker, 96–94 for Parker, and 95–95.
In the days leading up to the fight, many wondered what tactical approach Parker would adopt against a limited but deadly puncher like Wardley to neutralize his strengths and capitalize on them. Ultimately, between the cautious approach he showed against Zhilei Zhang and the hyper-aggressive one against Deontay Wilder, the New Zealander chose a middle ground. Andy Lee’s pupil took control of the center of the ring and dictated the pace, but he did so with calculated pressure, advancing in small steps rather than recklessly closing the distance to impose his weight advantage.
It was a seemingly risky tactic that gave Wardley room to unleash his deadly shots, but in the opening round it appeared to work: Parker won the jab battle brilliantly and closed the session with an excellent two-handed attack.
The hometown fighter, however, made it clear early on that he wasn’t there to play the supporting role. In the second round, a powerful right hand to the temple shook Parker, forcing him back into the corner, where he was met with a hailstorm of heavy punches. The loss of his mouthpiece, perhaps not entirely accidental, proved providential, giving Parker a few extra moments to recover and survive the round.
Galvanized by a solid right hand early in the third, Parker stuck to his initial game plan, continuing to press forward despite giving the quicker, more explosive Wardley opportunities to counter. Gradually, the Kiwi managed to steady the fight and regain control, delivering one of his best rounds in the fifth. During the middle stages, Wardley appeared content to wait, relying on sporadic bursts, likely confident he could find an opening as he had in the second round.
As the minutes passed, however, Wardley and his corner must have realized that by continually giving Parker the initiative, they were losing too many rounds. From the seventh onward, the Ipswich native became livelier and more proactive, but lacked accuracy and unpredictability. His attempts to raise the tempo allowed Parker to do the opposite: the New Zealander capitalized on Wardley’s predictable attacks to make him miss frequently, lower his own output, and focus on landing clean, well-timed counters.
The tactical evolution of the fight seemed to be steering Parker toward victory. He stunned Wardley with a fine left hook in the ninth, followed by many sharp and effective punches, and went on to dominate the first part of the tenth: everything pointed to an imminent triumph. Yet two factors combined to derail that seemingly unstoppable train: Wardley’s unbreakable determination and Parker’s belief that victory was already within reach.
The former world champion got carried away by his momentum, continuing to trade without the necessary caution, while his opponent, at the same time, began throwing desperate punches with full force. The turning point came with a superb uppercut to the chin that left Parker dazed and at the mercy of Wardley’s sudden, lethal combinations.
Returning to his corner visibly disoriented, Parker entered the eleventh round knowing he needed to grit his teeth and survive — which he was managing to do, bravely withstanding Wardley’s wild attacks as the Englishman’s energy began to wane.
Just then, however, Mr. Howard Foster made a decision bound to spark debate. There’s no doubt the New Zealander was hurt and exhausted, but Wardley’s last flurries were messy, inaccurate, and not particularly damaging. Parker still appeared lucid and capable of defending himself, which made the stoppage seem premature to this writer. Of course, the ending could have come moments later in any case, but as this very fight reminded us, in boxing everything can change in a split second.
Paradoxically, in a way, Joseph Parker became a victim of his own astonishing wins. Defeating top-tier, dangerous opponents like Wilder, Zhang, and Bakole gave him enormous confidence, perhaps too much. He agreed to risk his already-assured mandatory challenger position by taking on a wild puncher like Wardley, and did so with the attitude of a man convinced he could destroy without being destroyed.
Fabio Wardley deserves all the praise in the world for his courage, determination, and ability to summon hidden strength when everything seems lost. Now, the Brit wants to shock the world once again, having loudly called for a shot at unified heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk. We’ll soon see whether the WBO grants him the spot that once belonged to Parker — or, given the controversial nature of last night’s ending, prefers to order a rematch.