Connor Parker joked that he might attempt to carry out an impression of Vasyl Lomachenko when he steps in the ring with Sam Maxwell in Birmingham on November 30, with Maxwell’s WBO European super lightweight title at stake.
Maxwell twice fought the Ukrainian during his amateur days representing Team GB, but ultimately failed to defeat the now pound-for-pound star.
The 24-year-old Parker from Derbyshire and his 31-year-old opponent share an identical professional record of 12-0, but the East Midlands man accepts it is advantage Maxwell in terms of amateur experience, KOs recorded and being tested over ten rounds as Maxwell was by Sabri Sediri in a helter-skelter battle in March.
For Parker this is opportunity knocking in the Second City and he was happy to place his original fight plans on hold when he got wind of a title tilt.
“I was sat at home when I found out,” said the southpaw. “My dad told me about it then I had to hang on and wait for confirmation. I was so hoping I would get this shot, I had another fight scheduled for a couple of days after, but now I can’t wait for this one.
“It is a massive opportunity and I think I am ready for fights like this. Our records are similar and the only difference is Sam has got more knockouts than me. Record-wise that is the only thing and he has had a tough fight over ten rounds.
“The footage of his fights is all there to see right from his amateur days. He has been around for years, hasn’t he, and there is plenty to pick up on what he does. I might look at the Lomachenko tapes and do an impression of him!”
Parker has just a single stoppage on his ledger but he insists this is a misleading statistic that is down to the limited ambition of the opponents put in front of him. He is happy to back himself in the trading of bombs.
“I’ve boxed my fair share of journeymen and then won a Midlands title in my eighth fight. I beat Kevin Hooper for the Midlands and it was a good win that was because he has been English champion. Since then I have just been keeping busy.
“I’ve won the Midlands and I’ve got to prove myself against better opponents now. Hooper was the first one to really hit me back and I enjoyed it more because he was not just there to survive and, if anything, I felt more comfortable in there. I liked it.
“This show is as much as I could have asked for because, at the minute, not many people know who I am, but after this fight they will know and I can’t wait. If I win this fight it will just get bigger and bigger,” added Parker, who does not underestimate the magnitude of the task in front of him.
“I think Sam is a good, technical boxer with a strong back hand. You can tell he is schooled well. I sort of take something from the way Sabri Sediri got to him but it could have just been and off-night and we need to prepare for the best Sam possible and that is what we will be doing.
“True, he got put down two or three times and you do take confidence from it, but I am preparing for a hard fight. My record doesn’t suggest it, but I can punch.”