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Champion Usyk ordered to defend WBO title vs Parker
Gulf Today
|March 14, 2025
Heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk has been ordered to start negotiations to defend his World Boxing Organization (WBO) heavyweight title against Joseph Parker.
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The move that could end British fighter Daniel Dubois' hopes of a re-match with the Ukrainian.
The WBO announced Thursday that Usyk, who also holds the World Boxing Council (WBC) and World Boxing Association (WBA) belts, has 30 days to "reach terms" for a mandatory title defence against New Zealand's Parker or the governing body will call for purse bids.
Parker defended his WBO interim title in Riyadh last month with a second-round stoppage of Martin Bakole, a late replacement after Dubois withdrew because of illness.
Rather than reschedule his bout against Parker, International Boxing Federation (IBF) champion Dubois had hoped for a return clash with Usyk, who defeated the Briton by ninth-round knockout in August 2023.
This story is from the March 14, 2025 edition of Gulf Today.
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