Roughly two weeks after Joseph Parker announces his return to New Zealand for his next fight, the former world champion finally has an opponent.
Parker will face off against 19-fight veteran Alexander Flores on December 15 in Christchurch, New Zealand. The fight will mark Parker's first fight in New Zealand since the summer of 2017 and the first time Parker fights in Christchurch since 2016.
The 26-year-old Parker, who at one point held the WBO heavyweight world title, is currently on a two-fight losing streak. The first was a unanimous decision loss to Anthony Joshua this past March in a WBA/WBO/IBF/IBO heavyweight title unification. The other loss was against Dillian Whyte back in July, also by unanimous decision. The two losses put Parker out of the WBO rankings and is ranked in just one of the four main governing bodies, No. 5 in the WBC heavyweight rankings.
Flores, a former WBC Youth World heavyweight titleholder, sports a 17-1-1 pro record. Flores' only fight of note in his career was a 2014 encounter against eventual IBF heavyweight champion Charles Martin. Flores would go on to lose the fight by knockout with the WBO-NABO heavyweight title on the line and since then, Flores has a 3-0-1 record.
The December 15 card will also feature Junior Fa, a local undefeated heavyweight prospect that is making waves in the division. Fa is currently ranked No. 12 by the WBO and his opponent for December 15 has yet to be announced.
