Pretender v Contender: Fury can overcome the odds against Parker

Hughie Fury takes on Joseph Parker in Manchester on Saturday night for the WBO heavyweight title.

This has all the makings of a fantastic bout: two talented young fighters vying to remain undefeated while attempting to step into the limelight.

The boxing game is all about levels. Fury will be looking to prove he can live in this sort of company. Parker will try to show the world he’s good enough to challenge Anthony Joshua.

At 4/6, Parker is the favourite, while Fury is the slight outsider at 6/5. The Draw is at 20/1.

50/50 fight

After last weekend’s draw in the super fight between Gennady Golovkin and Saul Alvarez, this is another difficult one to call.

Both Parker and Fury tick the majority of the boxes when it comes to the boxing tool-kit.

The New Zealander – the current WBO champion – has a good jab, decent footwork and a lot of power.

He’s fought a higher calibre opponent than Fury over the last couple of years, too. However, it’s highly debatable he hasn’t looked great in doing so.

Fury, on the other hand, is practically untested at this level. Parker will be his first step into ‘world-class’ territory.

The Manchester fighter is the bigger man at 6ft 6in and has a 2in reach advantage over the Kiwi.

Clearly talented, and the younger man at 22-years-old, Fury has a lot of potential to unlock.

Prediction

Much like his cousin, Tyson, Hughie maintains an awkward style that’s difficult to combat. He’s big, he’s rangy, and he can jab you into submission.

Parker will be looking for a swift resolution. He relies a lot on his power so he’ll probably attempt to take Fury out quickly.

It will mean adjusting to the Englishman’s unpredictability in the early rounds, then settling and trying to do some damage.

If Fury can last into the later stages of the fight, he has a huge chance of an upset. He’s arguably the more technically-skilled boxer and that jab will punish.

This fight is a very close call. We’d be tempted to back the draw at 20/1, but then when do heavyweights ever go the distance?

Instead, we’re going for a Fury win at 6/5. As mentioned previously, boxing is about levels. And we think Hughie has a few more to go to than Parker.

Roared on by his home crowd, the Briton may have a knockout in him at a pretty huge 11/2.

Click here for more Parker v Fury odds.

All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing