Joseph Parker says he has no time for easy fights as he looks to become a heavyweight champion again.
Speaking ahead of his crucial fight with Dillian Whyte, the New Zealander said fighting tough opponents like Whyte will give him the best chance to win back the WBO title he lost to Anthony Joshua in March.
“I lost the world title, we are still hungry,” he said. “Our team really want to be champion again so there’s no point in mucking around with fights that are easy.
“There is no point going into camp and training for so long and then blasting someone out in one round.
“The main person to look at this and overlook and see if it’s the right fight is [trainer] Kevin [Barry] and our matchmaker and I’m happy with it as well, so when the whole team is happy, it’s time for us to get it on.
“Every heavyweight possesses power but off Dillian’s record, you can see he’s got a lot of knockouts so you know he possesses the power to knock you out if he catches you.
“The challenge of fighting someone who is highly ranked and the power that he brings, and the style he brings, that’s going to bring the best out of us.”
Parker lost on points to Joshua, and although he wants a shot at the title again himself, he thinks a possible Joshua-Deontay Wilder bout would be great for the heavyweight division.
“Anthony and Wilder, they are the real deals. Anthony has got three belts, Wilder has got one.
“It’s so exciting, the heavyweight division. There are so many fights that can happen and there are so many heavyweights that are hungry to be at the top of their game or try their best to be at the top, so he definitely belongs there.
“I think it should happen, not only for boxing but for the fans out there. Everyone wants to see that fight and everyone wants to see who the best in the world is.
“If the fight did happen, Wilder has got that big right hand but boxing is one of those things where anything can happen and anything can change just like that.”
