Joseph Parker’s Promoter Reveals He Had Surgery Before Anthony Joshua Fight

WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker won’t just be fighting unified champion Anthony Joshua, he’ll fight him in his first fight since having a secret double elbow surgery just a few months ago.

David Higgins, Parker’s promoter, told ESPN of the surgery, saying it was done to deal with injuries on both of his elbows that he had been suffering since 2016. Higgins was quick to point out the surgery was a success and that he Parker will be better than ever when he faces Joshua.

“He’s got his snap in his jab back and this really is a good news story. This was the worst kept secret in boxing so we finally decided to let it out. It’s good news. Everything has been timed to suit this, so there’s nothing bad about it from Parker’s perspective. It’s been a great camp,” Higgins said.

Parker has not fought since retaining his title against Hughie Fury last September. Parker defeated Hughie by majority decision in what was Parker’s second successful defense of the world title he won back in December 2016 when he defeated Andy Ruiz Jr. According to Craig Ball, the surgeon who operated on Parker, the surgery was a success and that Parker is quickly finding his range of motion and recovering very well, saying that Parker could be even faster than he was previously now that he no longer has pain limiting him.

Joshua vs. Parker will take place on March 31 at Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Wales. The fight will be televised live in the United States on Showtime and Fightful will have live coverage of that fight. The fight will unify the WBA “super,” IBF, IBO and WBO heavyweight titles, with the winner potentially getting a heavyweight superfight with WBC champion Deontay Wilder.