- Daniel Dubois retired from his fight for the title with Joseph Parker due to a disease
- Now Parker has revealed what he really thinks about the late withdrawal of the star
Joseph Parker came to Saudi Arabia to try to win the heavyweight title of Daniel Dubois FIB.
Instead, Parker has focused his attention on the Congolese heavyweight Martin Bakole after Dubois withdrew from Saturday's fight due to a medical problem. Bakole was a last -minute replacement.
The show continues. It is not even only in boxing, but it is in life, “Parker told Sky Sports.” Things happen, you just have to adjust and adapt to the situation. “
Dubois promoter Frank Warren had not confirmed the champion's status before Friday's weighing, but said Thursday night that Dubois was “being evaluated by a doctor.”
Bakole posted a video on his Instagram account on Friday to say he was waiting for a flight from Kinshasa in the Congo.
“I'm on the way,” said Bakole, whose itinerary included a stop at Addis Abeba, Ethiopia. I can't wait. I think I will surprise the world tomorrow. A boxer is like a soldier, every time they ask him to go to war, he is always ready.
Joseph Parker insists that 'the show continues' after Daniel Dubois retired from his fight
Daniel Dubois retired from the highly anticipated fight for the title after maintaining a disease
Martin Bakole has intervened in the short term and has declared that “will surprise the world”
Although there is no opportunity for a world title on Saturday, Parker-Bakole winner would be online to fight Oleksandr Usyk for the WBO belt of the Ukraine. The OMB announced that the winner would become the mandatory challenger.
“I said it before, I will fight with everyone, no matter who it is,” said Parker. 'Thanks to Martin for putting his hand. He is a hard fighter. I look forward to that challenge.
Parker (35-3, 23 kos) is a former OMB champion. The New Zealander won the belt in December 2016 when he beat Andy Ruiz and lost it to Anthony Joshua 15 months later.
Bakole (21-1, 16 kos) weighed more than 280 pounds in his most recent fight when he arrested Jared Anderson in the fifth round last August in Los Angeles.
Dubois hoped to win and then face Ushk at the end of this year. He made his first defense for the title last September with a brutal knockout of Fifth Round of Joshua in front of 96,000 fans at the Wembley stadium.
The London resident became the headline three months before, when Usyk unoccupied the FIB belt.
The main attraction of Saturday is the rematch between Artur Beterbiev and Dmitry Bivol. Beterbiev became the undisputed lightweight worldwide champion after a decision of contentious points about Bivol in October.