Joseph Parker

Parker scoffs at 'ridiculous' deal

Higgins is adamant New Zealand boxer Parker deserves at least 40 per cent of a fight against Joshua, the IBF and WBA champion, and won't back down from that. Hearn obviously isn't close to that with his offer.

"I got this weird email from Eddie's email address, but he must have been hacked," Higgins told Sky Sports. "He made the most ridiculously low offer. It could have been the most insulting offer in boxing history.

"He's got my number if he wants to actually make a respectable offer.

Parker OK with 40/60 split

Joseph Parker's promoter is prepared to give Anthony Joshua 60 per cent of a deal to unify three of the four heavyweight belts.

Joshua's backer Eddie Hearn is courting WBO champion Parker and WBC champion Deontay Wilder for the rights to fight his IBF and WBA belt holder and would like the next deal done by the end of the month.

Duco Events boss David Higgins has made a move on the bidding table, dropping his cut as negotiations ramp up.

'Parker scaredest of them all'

Unification is the catchword for 2018 after Britain's Anthony Joshua defended his WBA and IBF titles against Carlos Takam last weekend.

Parker, the WBO champion, is the third fighter in the equation and Wilder was brutal in his assessment of the Kiwi's talent and campaign.

Parker attended Wilder's last fight in February, when the American took his record to 38-0 against Gerald Washington, and spoke of his hopes of getting in the ring with him. But with Parker bogged down with a mandatory defence against Hughie Fury, the Wilder fight hasn't eventuated.

Parker 'not shy' of Joshua fight

Parker's promoter David Higgins made that clear as the boxing world digested Joshua's 10th round stoppage of Carlos Takam in Cardiff last weekend.

Higgins' one condition remains a "substantial" increase in the split of the purse previously suggested by Joshua's boss Eddie Hearn who has intimated an 80-20 cut in the big Brit's favour.

After getting past the durable Takam, Hearn and Joshua targeted WBO champion Parker, WBC champion Deontay Wilder and sidelined star Tyson Fury as the fights they would chase in 2018. And they have a February 3 slot vacant at the moment.

Parker: Joshua 'just average'

It was an ugly win for the British boxing star who moved to 20-0 in his career, all by stoppage, but the Watford man mountain maintained his pledge to unify the heavyweight division next year.

The next step in the journey will either be a mandatory defence of the WBA belt, or a fight with World Boxing Organisation champion Joseph Parker, the promoter Eddie Hearn intimated hours after Joshua had forced a 10th-round referee stoppage against granite-chinned Takam.

Barry: Parker can dethrone AJ

That's the firm belief of Parker's trainer Kevin Barry after he analysed Joshua's 10th round stoppage of durable Frenchman Carlos Takam to defend his IBF and WBA titles in Cardiff on Sunday (NZT).

All the attention now moves to Joshua's next opponent - with Parker, as WBO champion, and American Deontay Wilder as the WBC belt holder, the names on everyone lips as unification hopes come into the frame for 2018.

Bulk up sees Parker lose a step

The WBO world heavyweight champion has shelved plans for a December fight and will instead use the time to reshape his body for a year he hopes to get in line for a unification fight with either Anthony Joshua or Deontay Wilder.

Parker's trainer Kevin Barry will arrive in Auckland late next week from Las Vegas to oversee a six-week camp where the focus will be on speed.

Joseph Parker cancels plans to fight in December

There had been hopes of New Zealand's boxing star squeezing in another title bout in December following his mandatory defence win in Manchester against Hughie Fury in September.

His promoters at Duco Events had advanced negotiations with Japan's WBO No 9 Kyotaro Fujimoto.

But struggles to get a satisfactory TV deal in place on such a short time frame have made that too difficult.

Joshua plots Parker fight

The Daily Telegraph reported on Wednesday that Joshua, who holds the World Boxing Association (WBA) and International Boxing Federation (IBF) crowns is looking to add the World Boxing Organisation (WBO) title held by Parker with a February 3 fight mooted for London.

Joshua, who fights Carlos Takam in Cardiff on Saturday (NZT Sunday), was "likely to target" Parker next, followed by "a blockbuster battle with Deontay Wilder", the World Boxing Council (WBC) champion.

Tyson Fury option for Parker

Higgins has engaged Joshua promoter Eddie Hearn in a verbal stoush after heavy criticism of Parker's recent laboured WBO title defence against Hughie Fury in Manchester.

Hearn said Parker's performance was "very poor" and meant he was a hard sell in the UK now with fans viewing the Kiwi as a "mismatch" against WBA and IBF champion Anthony Joshua.

Hearn felt Parker's effort had also devalued a potential clash with Tony Bellew, should Bellew get past David Haye in their juicy London rematch.

 Higgins is eager to make 2018 a major money year for his unbeaten champion.