Notebook: Parker sets sail against Chisora with new trainer Andy Lee in corner

Campbell Hatton's 2nd fight; Algieri on Triller PPV; Quick hits

Former heavyweight titlist Joseph Parker has designs on winning another world title and even though he has won four fights in row since a forgettable 2018 of back-to-back decision losses to Anthony Joshua, which cost him his belt in their unification fight, and Dillian Whyte, he decided to change trainers.

Parker parted ways with longtime trainer Kevin Barry and now with former middleweight titlist Andy Lee, a disciple of the late great Hall of Famer Emanuel Steward, who will guide him for the first time when he takes on former title challenger Dereck Chisora in a 12-rounder on Saturday (DAZN in U.S., Sky Sports Box Office in U.K., 1 p.m. ET) at AO Arena in Manchester, England.

“I’m very prepared for this fight,” Parker said this week. “I’ve had a great training camp with Andy in Ireland, then we moved over to Morecambe (in England) and got some great sparring under our belt, great pad work, bag, everything. I feel like with this fight, physically and mentally, I’m in a great place, probably the best I’ve been in a while.”

Parker (28-2, 21 KOs), 29, of New Zealand, said he has clicked with Lee and made a few changes.

“You will see some good changes. I'll be sharper, with better movement and better footwork,” said Parker, who is coming off a 12-round decision win over amateur rival and countryman Junior Fa in February. “I'll be focused for the whole fight. If I execute the game plan that Andy has put in place, it should be a good night for Team Parker. I expect Dereck to be Dereck — to apply pressure from the beginning, throwing punches and bombs.”

Lee, who is also an assistant trainer to his cousin and heavyweight champion Tyson Fury, said he is pleased by what Parker showed him in their training camp.

“I see Joseph boxing a smart fight,” Lee said. “If he can put in the practice what we’ve been rehearsing in training then I can Joseph winning by late stoppage. We don’t want to leave anything to the judges. The only way to guarantee victory in this game is by getting a knockout, as much as they’re going for it, we’ll be going for it as well.”

Parker hopes a good showing against Chisora will keep him on the path to another title shot, which is what he really wants.

“I've been a world champion before and I want to be world champion again. In order to achieve that goal I have to get Dereck out of the way first,” Parker said. “Then set up the other fights that are out there. We've done everything we can to prepare for whatever he brings.

“I think this is the perfect fight at the right time. We’re right there, get a good victory and there’s many other great fights out there to be made and to position yourself when the titles are free to fight for.”

Chisora (32-10, 23 KOs), 37, of England, last fought on Oct. 31, when he gave former undisputed cruiserweight champion Oleksandr Usyk a very tough fight in a 12-round decision loss. He said he will bring the heat, as usual, against Parker.

“I want to do what I do best, come forward, fight, chuck hell and do what I do every day,” said Chisora, who is trained by Hall of Famer Buddy McGirt. “Roll the dice and rock and roll, go at it. I’ll come out of the gates and just go.”

Hatton fight No. 2

Junior lightweight Campbell Hatton (1-0), the 20-year-old son of British legend Ricky Hatton, will have his second pro fight on Saturday’s Parker-Chisora undercard in his hometown of Manchester. Hatton, who turned pro on March 27, will face Levi Dunn (0-4), 23, of England, in a four-rounder.

Reflecting on his pro debut on the undercard of Dillian Whyte-Alexander Povetkin II, Hatton said, “I learnt a lot; the whole week was a great experience for me. I enjoyed every minute,” he said. “I learnt just how hard a game it is. The opponent I faced (Jesus Ruiz) was a tough, durable lad. I got the eight-ounce gloves on and thought he’s not going to last two rounds with these on. They are tough blokes; you don’t just knock them over. Now I know to keep calm and not try and force things.”

Hatton, who is trained by his uncle and former pro Matthew Hatton, has sparred with Dunn and said he knows what to expect.

“It’s a good thing at this stage in my career to put a bit of a game plan together which you don’t normally get,” Hatton said. “That’s going to help me stay calm as well. I know the specific things I need to do. I think in my first fight I showed little glimpses of what I can do. I set a high pace that I could fight, but I didn’t show my boxing brain and the classy work I can do. This time I do want to show that patience and put in a more classy performance.”

Algieri returns on Triller card

Former junior welterweight world titlist Chris Algieri, who has not fought since stopping Tommy Coyle in a thrilling battle in June 2019, will end a two-year layoff when he returns to fight this summer on a Triller Fight Club pay-per-view undercard.

Manager Keith Connolly and promoter Joe DeGuardia worked out a deal for Algieri to box on a Triller card that is likely to be in July. I spoke to Algieri, Connolly and Triller chief boxing officer Peter Kahn about the plans and wrote about it for BoxingScene. Please read the story here: https://www.boxingscene.com/chris-algieri-return-on-summer-triller-fight-club-ppv-card--157274

Quick hits

Mayweather Promotions CEO Leonard Ellerbe and Gervonta Davis both wrote on social media that Davis’ challenge of secondary junior welterweight titlist Mario Barrios (26-0, 17 KOs) in the main event of a Showtime PPV card on June 26, which was announced a couple of weeks ago without a site locked in, will take place in Atlanta. Davis (24-0, 23 KOs) is from Baltimore but Atlanta is a second home to him. He headlined a Showtime card from State Farm Arena in Atlanta two fights ago and stopped Yuriorkis Gamboa in the 12th round.

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Blue-chip welterweight prospect Xander Zayas (8-0, 6 KOs), 18, a Puerto Rican from Sunrise, Florida, will be back in action in a six-rounder on June 12 on the undercard of the Top Rank on ESPN card headlined by Shakur Stevenson-Jeremiah Nakathila at the Virgin Hotels in Las Vegas, manager Peter Kahn told Fight Freaks Unite. Zayas is coming off a fight this past Saturday when he destroyed Demarcus Layton in 56 seconds on the undercard of Emanuel Navarrete’s featherweight title defense against Christopher Diaz at Silver Spurs Arena in Kissimmee, Florida.

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Matchroom Boxing middleweight prospect Austin “Ammo” Williams (8-0, 6 KOs), 24, of Houston, who recently publicly lashed out at promoter Eddie Hearn for unknown reasons, posted on social media Thursday that he was taking a break from boxing to address mental health issues. “I will be taking some time off and focusing my efforts towards my mental health and wellness,” Williams wrote. “Thank you to my family, friends and supporters for the love, strength and encouragement. I sincerely apologize to anyone I may have hurt or offended and I stand with anyone navigating through their mental health journey. If you’re struggling with your mental health, get help please. I love you all and I will be back!”

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The WBC announced that the purse bid for a rematch between cruiserweight titlist Ilunga Makabu and mandatory challenger Aleksei Papin is scheduled for May 11. Makabu (28-2, 25 KOs), 33, of the Democratic Republic of Congo, is coming off his first defense, a seventh-round knockout of Olanrewaju Durodola in December in Kinshasa, Congo. Papin (13-1, 12 KOs), 33, of Russia, knocked out Ruslan Fayfer in the sixth round last August in an eliminator to earn the mandatory position. Makabu dropped Papin in the 12th round and won a majority decision when they met in a regional title bout in Russia in August 2019.

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Weights from London for Friday’s Queensberry Promotions card (ESPN+ in U.S., BT Sport in U.K.): Moruti Mthalane 111.9 pounds, Sunny Edwards 111.3 (for Mthalane’s IBF flyweight title); Michael Conlan 121.9m Ionut Baluta 122; Troy Williamson 153, Kieran Smith 153.4; Ryan Garner 136.75, Jordan Ellison 141; Joshua Frankham 152.9, Naheem Ali 156.2.

Show and tell

One of the great days of my life was when I got the call from USA Today with the offer to become the paper’s boxing writer in February 2000. It was a dream come true and I accepted immediately, having no idea the salary or any other details. Did it matter? Anyway, I got those details eventually and moved for the job about six weeks later. After getting my feet wet in the office for about a month, I finally got sent to cover my first fight as the official boxing writer for the paper. I went to New York to cover Lennox Lewis’ heavyweight championship defense against Michael Grant at Madison Square Garden. Quite a way to kick things off, right?

I have vivid memories of that fight week, including meeting many of the people in the business I still deal with to this day. I remember walking into Lewis’ media workout inside the MSG Theater and being greeted by the late, great trainer Emanuel Steward, who I had spoken to over the phone a few weeks earlier but had never met. He recognized me from seeing my picture in USA Today and gave me a giant hug because he was so overjoyed the paper had hired a dedicated boxing reporter. That was the beginning of what became a cherished friendship. That is just one detail I remember so clearly about that week, which also included meeting undercard fighters Arturo Gatti and Wladimir Klitschko, both of whom I would get to know and deeply respect. And then came fight night. I’ll be honest — I was nervous. I was in press row 1 at a legendary arena to cover the heavyweight championship of the world and writing about it for the biggest paper in the country surrounded by the far more experienced boss scribes, such as Michael Katz and Ed Schuyler, I had read for years. It wasn’t much of a fight as Lewis dropped Grant three times in the first round and knocked him out in the second to retain the title. It’s probably not a very memorable fight to most people, but it is one of the most memorable to me. Here is my ringside credential to the fight, which took place on April 29, 2000 — 21 years ago on Thursday. Where does the time go?

Parker photo: Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing