16 May 2012

Parker confirms decision to turn professional

11:46 am on 16 May 2012

Having missed out on an Olympic spot for the London Games, the Auckland based super heavyweight boxer Joseph Parker's confirmed he's turning professional.

Parker missed qualifying for the Olympics when he failed to win the Oceania Champs in March, with the sole Oceania spot going to Australian Johan Linde.

A couple of weeks ago though Parker won an international event in Serbia, beating Linde on the way to his win.

Parker's first professional bout will be on the undercard for the Shane Cameron-Monte Barrett fight in Auckland in early July.

Cameron's returning to the heavyweight division after dropping to cruiserweight following his loss to David Tua, while American Barrett has previously beaten Tua.