Parker’s quickfire dismissal of Bakole followed victories over Zhilei Zhang and Deontay Wilder, and his coach Andy Lee – who also trains Fury – said of Parker on Saturday: “He’s the best heavyweight in the world.
Several heavyweights were in action on the undercard of Artur Beterbiev vs Dmitry Bivol 2, with Joseph Parker knocking out Martin Bakole in round two, and Agit Kabayel stopping Zhilei Zhang to the body in round six.
Sitting between Fury and Parker in The Ring’s rankings is Dubois, who is enjoying a similar career resurgence to Parker.
And while Parker was victorious, he was denied the chance to win the IBF heavyweight title, which Dubois holds.
In their title fight in 2023, Dubois was stopped after dropping the unbeaten Ukrainian with a low blow, though many observers believed it was a legal body shot.
