Fabio Wardley (20-0-1, 19 KOs) says Joseph Parker (36-4, 24 KOs) pulled an “Old, wily veteran” trick by losing his mouthpiece in round two after he’d hit him with 20 unanswered punches in their heavyweight unification fight for the WBA and WBO interim titles on Saturday night at the O2 Arena in London.

(Credit: Queensberry/Leigh Dawney)

Parker’s Veteran Trick

Wardley states that he’s not going to “cry about it,” but you can tell that he’s bothered by the timing of Parker losing his mouthpiece in round two after he had him on the verge of being knocked out. It would have been an easy night for Wardley if not for that.

Wardley, 30, still won the fight by an 11th-round knockout to become the mandatory to undisputed champion Oleksandr Usyk. But Fabio was forced to take a lot of heavy shots by failing to get the quick stoppage.

“I’m here for the drama. I’m here for the entertainment. I had him hurt, I had him going. I don’t know how many punches I shipped in the second round,” said Fabio Wardley to iFL TV, discussing his win over Joseph Parker. “I caught him a few good times in the middle rounds as well.”

Parker looked out of it in the second round after taking a blizzard of punches from Wardley. What may have saved Parker was losing his mouthpiece with 40 seconds to go.

Seconds That Saved Him

The referee, Howard Foster, stopped the action just when Wardley had him hurt. Ten seconds elapsed on the clock while the gumshield was being washed off and replaced.

By the time the action resumed, Parker had recovered and survived the final 30 seconds. Interestingly, the round played out in the same way as the last part of the 10th and the 11th, with Wardley teeing off on a hurt Parker with combinations.

What allowed Parker to escape the 10th was the round ending in the nick of time. He looked like he wouldn’t have made it out of the ring if not for the bell sounding.

“He wasn’t too phased in moments in spaces. So, he’s a tough guy. We knew going into it that it wouldn’t be a one-punch guy,” said Wardley about Parker. “We had to break him down. I know three people who backed me. I want apology letters stacked up.”

Wardley hurt Parker in rounds 2, 10, and 11. In between those rounds, Parker was controlling the action with his powerful jab, right hand, and left hooks. He had more weapons to use than Wardley did, and that allowed him to dominate.

Wardley was missing a lot of punches. What ultimately allowed Fabio to win was his combination punching and hand speed. When he hurt Parker, he flurried on him with shots in the 10th and 11th. He couldn’t do anything but cover up while Fabio hit him with an avalanche of punches.

Fabio’s Frustration Shows

“That’s the specifics of the stoppage. I threw 20-odd punches. He wasn’t answering. An old, wily trick. He’s an old veteran,” said Wardley about Parker losing his gumshield in round two after being hurt. “Nothing to cry about.”

Wardley should be upset because the gumshield trick by Parker may have saved him from being knocked out in round 2. If not for that, it’s very possible that Parker would have been stopped because Wardley had him against the ropes and flurrying on him.