After Joseph Parker’s unanimous decision win over Hughie Fury in Manchester this past September, many thought his stock plummeted, including promoter Eddie Hearn, who didn’t have a lot of good things to say about the WBO World heavyweight champion’s fight.

“Joseph Parker boxed, it was one of the worst heavyweight fights I’ve ever seen. So his stock has just plummeted but we still want his belt, but I’d like to see some Brits face him. Wilder is the fight,” he commented after the fight.
At the time, Hearn’s words somewhat rang true. Parker didn’t look like a world-class elite level champion against his mandatory challenger Fury, but he still got the job done and left Manchester with the belt