Boxing: Champion Usyk ordered to defend WBO title against Parker

World Heavyweight Champion Oleksandr Usyk has been ordered to start negotiations to defend his World Boxing Organisation (WBO) heavyweight title against Joseph Parker, UK media widely reports.

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.

By rescheduling his bout against Parker, International Boxing Federation (IBF) champion Daniel Dubois had hoped for a return clash with Usyk, who defeated the Briton by ninth-round knockout in August 2023.

The 27-year-old Dubois was said to be in talks to face Usyk in a fight that would see all four major world heavyweight titles up for grabs.

However, the WBO's announcement has put that desire on ice in a sport where the lack of a single global governing body means there are usually multiple world champions in the same weight class, Supersport reported.

Usyk defeated Britain's Tyson Fury in May 2024 to become the first undisputed world heavyweight champion in almost 25 years.

Former undisputed world cruiserweight champion Usyk, 38, extended his perfect professional record to 23 wins, with 14 knockouts, after defeating Tyson Fury in a re-match in December.

The win meant that he retained the unified WBC, WBA, and WBO championships.

Immediately after the December bout, Dubois declared that he would fight Usyk next as his biggest current competitor, but it appears Parker, who held the WBO title from 2016 to 2018 will get the nod.

He is on a six-fight winning streak since losing to Joe Joyce in 2022.

In February, Usyk said he planned to have two more fights before retiring.