BOXING
Parker backing Fury to beat Usyk, sees Ngannou performance as a one-off
Joseph Parker is certain Tyson Fury will improve on his underwhelming performance against Francis Ngannou when he takes on Oleksandr Usyk in their huge unification bout in February.
Following months of discussions between the fighters' representatives, WBC heavyweight champion Fury will finally take on Usyk – who holds the WBA (Super), IBF, WBO, IBO and the Ring belts – in Riyadh on February 17.
Fury's plans to face the Ukrainian were almost dealt a surprising blow in October, when he was fortunate to score an unconvincing split-decision win over former UFC Heavyweight Champion and boxing debutant Francis Ngannou.
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While many believe Fury's sloppy performance against Ngannou spells bad news for his meeting with Usyk, Parker is certain he will bounce back.
Asked whether he was confident in Fury's chances of victory, Parker told Stats Perform: "Very confident. I'm very confident that Tyson will take care of business.
"Francis Ngannou is a champion himself, the UFC Heavyweight Champion of the world and he put on probably the best camp of his life and a good performance against Tyson.
"Tyson wasn't the best, he didn't put on the best performance and best display that he could have, but he got the win which is the main thing.
"Now he's locked in this fight with Usyk on February 17. I think locking in that big fight with Usyk has been a big change for him, and hopefully he has the best camp and puts on the performance that we know he can."
Parker managed a stunning win over Deontay Wilder on Saturday, with the duo fighting on the same card as Anthony Joshua, who stopped Otto Wallin in the fifth round.
Wallin is also backing Fury to step things up for his next fight, suggesting Ngannou's performance simply caught the Gypsy King off guard.
"I didn't think that Ngannou was going to stand any chance, but he did a really good job," Wallin told Stats Perform.
"He lasted 10 rounds, which is really amazing with the limited amount of boxing experience that he has, he did a really good job.
"At the same time, I don't think Fury looked the same in that fight. He didn't look like he was really prepared. He looked off and Ngannou is a strong guy.
"It's probably awkward coming from MMA, it's not easy to fight those guys. But I think when Fury is going to fight Usyk, he's probably going to step it up.
"Fury really has to be on his A-game. If he is, I think that he's going to win the fight."
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