Tyson Fury’s father John has given his thoughts on the upcoming showdown between Zhilei Zhang and Joseph Parker, believing that one man will be very difficult to beat.
The fight for the interim WBO heavyweight title features as chief support to Anthony Joshua vs Francis Ngannou on March 8 in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia.
Former world heavyweight champion Parker is coming off a career-defining performance against Deontay Wilder in December, winning via a one-sided unanimous decision after ‘The Bronze Bomber’ abandoned his usual spiteful approach and was frustratingly passive.
Zhang, meanwhile, comes off two back-to-back wins against Joe Joyce, stopping the Brit in April last year before scoring a scintillating third-round knockout in their September rematch.
John Fury has now predicted the bout whilst speaking to Free Bets, and while he likes what he sees in Parker, he is aware of the dangers that his Chinese opponent poses.
“Fair play to Joe Parker, he’s got a set. He’s probably getting well paid, but Zhang is a difficult guy to beat. I’m a big fan of his. I like what he does. A 6-foot-6, southpaw, can punch, he’s clinical and can do the business.
“Joe at 31 is the younger man, he’s the fresher man and he’s just shown what he can do. He could easily pull another upset, the same way he beat Wilder.
“Zhang though is different opposition. Still fresh, still strong, still hungry, not got a hundred million miles on the clock and he’s banging with both hands.
“Great fight though, big up to Joe Parker, he’s getting in with the right guys, he’s capable of beating anyone, he’s got plenty of bottle, he’s tough so he’s capable of springing upsets with anybody.”
Elsewhere on the card, Nick Ball challenges Rey Vargas for the WBC featherweight title, plus Gavin Gwynne goes up against Mark Chamberlain.