Boxing: Kiwi boxing blockbuster on hold when Junior Fa pulls out of Joseph Parker fight

With about 100 years of development, the Fight of the Century will have to wait for a new year.

The long-awaited Kiwi and Pasifika heavyweight showdown between Joseph Parker and Junior Fa has been postponed after Fa was sidelined by the fight’s official doctor following a blood test.

A new date and an updated card will be confirmed early next week, but it is expected to be in late February or early March.

“Junior had a routine blood test on Friday,” said his manager, Mark Keddell. “On Monday, the doctor informed us that he would not be authorized to fight for four weeks. As a result of that test, Junior will be operated on Tuesday.”

Keddell said he was not in a position to elaborate on what the test revealed or what the surgery involved, and said there were cards in this game that he had to hold close to his chest.

“Basically Junior has had an injury and is going to have a routine operation.”
Keddell said, and while the news was “devastating,” he didn’t see it affect his fighter’s chances.

“He’s in incredible shape,” Keddell said. “He’s at his fight weight, he’s got a six pack, he’s just one of those things.”

Keddell said that while Fa will lose some aerobic conditioning during the break, he was coming off a strong base and his power will only increase during the break.

Duco owner and Parker manager David Higgins today notified sponsors, broadcasters and key stakeholders of the decision.

“It’s one of those things where you have to deal with punches, if you’ll excuse the horrible pun,” he said. “Boxing has a long history of this and often the delay creates even better events. You have to look for silver lights.”

Higgins cited the Rumble in the Jungle and our own clash between David Tua and Shane Cameron as events where the delays added to the anticipation. Both ended up being, obviously, on very different scales, cultural phenomena.

The fight was being sold on PPV on Spark and was primarily backed by the Chow brothers’ Stonewood Homes.

“It’s like always,” Higgins said. “All tables and tickets are still valid. There is a waiting list for tables, so that those who cannot attend, their tables will again be at the top of the waiting list.

“We are also working with Air New Zealand to help those flying into the fight who have been affected.”

The fight is important for Parker (27-2), who has added three victories of varying quality since losing consecutive fights to Britons Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte.

If it was important to Parker, it was pivotal to Fa (19-0), who at 30 has not gained the traction in the heavyweight rankings that his undefeated record suggests, mainly due to the indescribable quality of most of his opponents. .

While the Fight of the Century fight is pure boxing hyperbole, it’s not an exaggeration to say that this was a career defining fight for Fa and a career crossroads for Parker.

“Joseph is in great shape,” Higgins said. “After almost a year of training and waiting, I imagine Joseph will have some fury to unleash on Junior Fa when they step into the ring next year.”

The fight was not only highly anticipated as a sports competition, but also as a boost for an events industry that has received a count of eight as a result of the pandemic that has swept across the globe.

Several high-profile sporting events and festivals have already been canceled this year, including the ASB Classic, the Piha Pro surf contest, and music events like Laneway.