Boxing: Daniel Dubois open to Joseph Parker fight

British boxer Daniel Dubois has volunteered to face former world heavyweight champion Joseph Parker, after hearing the Kiwi was frustrated his promoter was unable to get him fights.

Parker, the former WBO beltholder, has fought just once in 2019, scoring a 10th-round technical knockout against Alex Leapai in June. 

He was meant to fight Brit Dereck Chisora last month, but a spider bite forced him out of the contest and attempts to get back in the ring have fallen on deaf ears.

Earlier this week, the 27-year-old told Newshub he was tired of waiting to hear from Matchroom Boxing and promoter Eddie Hearn about a return to the ring. 

Dubois, the British and Commonwealth heavyweight champion, was told about Parker's frustrations and felt beating the Auckland-born fighter would do wonders for his career. 

"Someone told me yesterday that Parker was annoyed that his promoter can't get him fights," said Dubois. "As the busiest heavyweight in boxing, I’d be happy to give him work." 

A fight wouldn't happen until next year, with Dubois, 22, locked in to face Japanese fighter Kyotaro Fujimoto next month in London. Dubois' 12-round contest against Fujimoto will be his fifth of the year.

But Dubois is also interested in fighting Joe Joyce, Oleksandr Usyk, Alexander Povetkin and Adam Kownacki, desperate to climb the heavyweight division and win a world title. A win over Parker could see Dubious climb into the top five in the world rankings. 

But Parker only seems interested in facing Chisora, after calling out the Brit on Twitter. 

"We've been trying to make this fight for 2 years now. So let’s FIGHT. Simple. But now you’re as silent as Dillian Whyte avoiding a rematch. What's going on??" he wrote. 

Chisora's camp has now expressed interest in fighting Ukranian slugger Usyk and is still open to fighting Parker - but not before facing Usyk. 

"It was all scheduled, four weeks prior to the fight, he gets bitten by a spider and the fight doesn't happen," Chisora's promoter David Haye told Sky Sports UK.

"That was Parker's opportunity for the fight. It could still happen, but for me, Usyk is definitely the frontrunner - the fighter that I want, the fighter that Derek wants.

"I think Derek would have beat Parker, if he had turned up. We'll never know now.

"That's not Derek's fault, but as far as I'm concerned, the fight that means a lot more is fighting the WBO mandatory challenger in Oleksandr Usyk, who is the undisputed and undefeated fighter."

With two fights left on Parker's Matchroom contract, 2020 shapes as a defining year in his career, which may only last another 3-4 years. 

"It's good to be with [Matchroom], but also it's frustrating at times," Parker told Newshub, when discussing his lack of fights. 

"They were supposed to give us a decision last week. Now, they've said they'll give us a decision this week.

"I have no regrets in my life, I just wanted to fight before the end of the year."