Joseph Parker warns Anthony Joshua he has a killer instinct — so won’t let him off the hook like Wladimir Klitschko did
WBO world champ puts his title on the line against IBF, WBA and IBO king Joshua in Cardiff and says if the Brit goes down again he won't recover this time
JOSEPH PARKER warned Anthony Joshua he has a killer instinct — and will NOT let him off the hook like Wladimir Klitschko did.
Parker, 26, attempts to end AJ’s five-fight reign as world heavyweight champion and with it his unbeaten 20-fight record — all by KO.
WBO world champ Parker puts his title on the line against IBF, WBA and IBO king Joshua at Cardiff’s Principality Stadium on March 31.
And the Kiwi claims he can halt AJ’s charge towards becoming the undisputed world heavyweight champion.
Joshua has blown away all rivals with none so far able to take him the 12-round championship distance.
The closest AJ has come to losing his unblemished record is when Klitschko put him down in the sixth round of their world title war at Wembley in April last year.
But Joshua, 28, dragged himself back to his feet and eventually retained his title while also winning the WBA version with an 11th-round TKO when referee Dave Fields stepped in.
Parker said: “I was really surprised Klitschko couldn’t finish Joshua off after he had knocked him down.
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“I think with all Klitschko’s experience from 69 professional fights, he could have done a bit better.
“If I’d hurt Joshua, I would not give him a second chance.
“I’d put my foot down and do my best to get him out of there because I think I have the killer instinct that I will definitely show if I get AJ into that position.”
But Parker hailed AJ’s bravery against Klitschko, 41, adding: “AJ showed true heart when he got off the canvas. He showed he was the champion, the young one trying to take over.
“It was Joshua’s career-best fight. Joshua showed true heart to get back up and beat the count.
“Even though he wasn’t in the best place, he was able to regain his confidence and come back strong.”
Parker like most fans, does not expect the fight to go the full distance.
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The 6ft 4in New Zealander said: “The fight will be explosive. He won’t want to back down, I won’t back down.
“We both want to fight a smart fight but we both want to throw big bombs, that can hurt.
“And whoever lands first will knock the other fighter out, although I am not planning to get knocked out. I’m in there to knock him out.
“Me and the team are coming up with a game plan. And if I execute this game plan to the best of my ability, we can exploit the weaknesses Joshua has.”