By Ian S Palmer
Unbeaten heavyweight hopeful Joseph Parker of New Zealand enters the ring again this Saturday, October 1st when he battles it out with Alexander Dimitrenko of Russia at the Vodafone Events Centre in Manukau City, New Zealand. Parker is now the mandatory challenger for IBF Champions Anthony Joshua of England after beating Carlos Takam by unanimous decision in an elimination bout in May. He then stopped Solomon Haumono in the fourth round in his last outing in July. Dimitrenko is a former European Heavyweight Champion who beat Drazan Janjanin by an eight-round unanimous decision in his last outing in January. This 12-roud bout can be seen live in the UK on Sky Sports and is for Parker’s WBO Oriental Heavyweight Title.
Dimitrenko now fights out of Germany and had a fine amateur career. The 34-year-old enters the ring with a record of 38-2 with 24 Kos . He was beaten in 2009 by Eddie Chambers by 12-round majority decision and was dropped twice. That contest showed the big 6-foot-7 Russian has problems with boxers who are fast and mobile in the ring and also asked questions about his chin. Dimitrenko then won the European belt before being stopped by Kubrat Pulev in the 11th round in 2012. Since then, Dimitrenko has won six n a row with most of his opponents being Grade B level.
The 24-year-old Parker has a perfect mark of 20-0 along with 17 Kos. He’s well known for his power, but Parker’s speed should also be taken note of as he has fast hands as well. His biggest problem is leaving himself open for counter shots though. Parker doesn’t mind taken one or two punches to land one of his own. So far his chin has held out though as Takam rested it quite often. Dimitrenko generally boxes at a slower pace and has a stiff and effective jab. Parker’s current knockout ratio stands at 85 per cent while Dimitrenko’s is 60 per cent.
Parker needs to improve his stamina so he can fight the full three minutes of every round if he has to and he may need another few fights before he’s ready to challenge for a world title. He won the WBO Oriental Heavyweight Championship by stopping American Brian Minto in seven rounds back in 2014 and also holds several other regional heavyweight titles in his part of the world. The last win over Haumono was for the WBO Oriental Title and the OPBF crown. He’s faced some decent boxers so far such as Takam, Minto, Marcelo Luiz Nascimento, Kali Meehan, Bowie Tupou, Jason Pettaway, Frans Botha and Sherman Williams.
Parker turned pro back in 2005 and has 84 rounds under his belt since then. He has decent size for a modern-day heavyweight at 6-feet-4-inches in height with a 76-inch reach. Dimitrenko turned pro in 2001 and has boxed 219 rounds. He has the three-inch size advantage and a huge seven-inch edge in reach as his wingspan is 83 inches long. With both boxers having solid power this could be an entertaining tilt with a knockdown or two along the way.
Prediction……
Parker is the smaller man here, nut has the bigger punch and probably the better chin. If he uses his speed and mobility he should be able to emerge victorious. However, if he stands in front of Dimitrenko and just trades punches he could be in for a bit of a struggle. Look for Parker to take the fight by late stoppage or unanimous decision though.
