By Minnie Larry
Venue: Principality Stadium-Cardiff, Wales
78,000 British fans saw Anthony Joshua (21-0, 20 KOs) defeat Joseph Parker (24-1, 18 KOs) by unanimous decision on Saturday to unify the WBA/IBF/WBO championship belts. The fight was a tactical affair with each fighter respecting the other’s power. Parker used movement in the early rounds to confuse Joshua who was unable to find a target for his formidable right hand. But Joshua showed poise, waiting for the hyper Parker to settle down. The fight pace was erratic due to interference from referee Giuseppe Quartarone. However, Joshua would settle down in the middle rounds behind his jab.
Joshua stated after the fight “A right hand will take you around the block, but a good jab will take you around the world.”
Parker would follow through with his own jab, but due to Joshua’s reach advantage it proved ineffective. Parker would show moments of brilliance with several combinations to Joshua’s body.
Action picked up in the 6th, when Parker landed an uppercut which buckled Joshua’s knees. Referee Quartarone would interrupt any momentum Parker might have had by calling a timeout to admonish Parker for a phantom head-butt.
Joshua would establish control of the bout in the later rounds by applying pressure, though neither man would land anything of significance. However, Joshua would prove to be the busier of the two and opened a cut over Parker’s left eye in the 10th round. It was later determined the cut was due to an elbow.
The fight was not a showcase of either man’s potential due to the constant lulls in the action. The final round encapsulated the whole fight with each man shooting jabs, and neither willing to go for the knock out. Joshua would win the fight by unanimous decision. Scores were 118-110, 118-110, 119-109.
Undercard
Alexander Povetkin (34-1, 24 KOs) defeated British favorite David Price (22-5, 18 KOs) with a 5th round knockout. Price held his own in the early rounds by keeping the former champion Povetkin at bay with power shots. He stunned Povetkin with a right hook at the end of the 1st round.
However, once Povetkin found his range it was just a matter of time. He dropped Price in the 3rd round with a massive right hook. Price would answer the count and send Povetkin to the ropes with his own left hook. However, Povetkin’s experience would prove to be the ultimate decider. He landed a right/left combination which sent Price to La La land. He is now the mandatory challenger for the WBA belt. Time was 1:02.
Ryan Burnett (19-0, 9 KOs) retained his WBA bantamweight belt by defeating Yonfrez Parejo (21-3-1, 10 KOs). Burnett put on a boxing clinic against the slower Parejo. Parejo could not find his rhythm as Burnett was popping shots from every angle. Burnett would get the unanimous decision, 120-108 2x, and 116-112.
Anthony Crolla (33-6-3, 13 KOs) scored a unanimous decision over Edson Ramirez (18-3-1, 8 KOs). The former WBA lightweight champion suffered a cut in the early rounds. However, his experience led him to an easy victory over the journeyman Ramirez. Scores 100-91, 100-90, and 98-92.
Welterweight Josh Kelly (6-0, 4 KOs) cruised to a ten round unanimous decision over Carols Molina (28-9-2, 8 KOs). Scores were 98-92, 98-92, and 99-91.
