Joseph Parker will relinquish his WBO interim heavyweight title before his upcoming IBF title fight against a yet-to-be-determined opponent. Parker will enter the ring as the WBO interim champion but will officially vacate the title due to WBO policy regarding interim champions fighting against legitimate champions in other organizations.
Joseph Parker , known for his encounters with top heavyweight contenders, considers Andy Ruiz 's punch the most impactful he's experienced. Parker has faced formidable opponents like Dillian Whyte and Zhilei Zhang, but Ruiz left a lasting impression. He recounted, 'Dillian Whyte dropped me, Zhilei Zhang dropped me, but the one that really left an impression was Andy Ruiz .' Parker previously defeated Ruiz Jr. for the vacant WBO heavyweight title in a closely contested match in December 2016.
While two judges scored the fight in Parker's favor with narrow margins, one judge declared it a draw.Parker remained near the top of the heavyweight division, securing significant victories over Wilder and Zhang, propelling him into a highly anticipated IBF heavyweight title fight. However, the WBO recently announced that Parker will relinquish his WBO interim title before the bout commences. WBO president Gustavo Olivieri clarified the organization's policy, stating, 'When you have an interim champion, we don't unify an interim champion with a legitimate champion from another organization.' This decision was made to prevent any conflicts with the existing WBO champion.Despite this, Olivieri expressed support for Parker's upcoming fight, stating, 'So what we've done in this case is we've advised Queensberry Promotions, that we have no objection to Parker fighting for the IBF title. None at all. It is a great fight. We have a great relationship with the IBF, I'm very close to its president Darryl Peoples.' Olivieri indicated that Parker will be allowed to enter the ring as the WBO interim champion and be announced as such during the pre-fight introductions.
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