Joseph Parker reacts to being made mandatory challenger to Usyk-Dubois winner

Joseph Parker is happy at recent ruling but isn't getting ahead of himself

The WBO have ruled that Joseph Parker will be the mandatory challenger to the winner of Oleksandr Usyk vs Daniel Dubois , which takes place at Wembley Stadium on July 19.

WBO President, Gustav Olivieri, recently declared, “We made a decision that serves the interests of boxing and the fighters themselves. After the unification fight, [Joseph] Parker will receive the first right to a title fight.”

It means that likeable New Zealander will not only get his overdue shot at the world title, but a chance to become undisputed and own all the titles. It's a bit like waiting for a bus!

Despite being elated at the news, the 33-year-old, who trains with Andy Lee, is staying grounded, as boxing is a forested landscape with lots of obstacles in the way, which he is fully aware of after 13 years in the professional ranks.

"It’ll be great if that can happen - fight the winner," the former WBO world heavyweight champion begun. "But so many things happen in boxing and there's a lot of moving parts, just don’t know if it’ll go ahead or when, if you know what I mean? Just staying patient and waiting for what’s next, at the moment."

Parker is coming off a stunning second-round stoppage win over Martin Bakole in February, which was meant to be an IBF world title fight with Dubois, but the champion withdrew on fight week with an illness.

It was his sixth straight victory, since defeat to Joe Joyce in 2022. That 11th round knockout to Joyce remains his only loss in his last 13 fights, an incredible run that has seen him beat the likes of Derek Chisora twice, Deontay Wilder and Zhilei Zhang, which his how he earned his way to becoming the WBO mandatory.

Usyk has already defeated Dubois, handily, via a ninth-round knockout in Poland in August 2023. Their Wembley Stadium showdown this summer has already sold over 60,000 tickets and is set to be a record-breaking event.