Interviews
EXCLUSIVE: Lauren Parker – Getting out of your comfort zone
Nerves before a fight are part of a fighter’s preparation, it’s normal. Lauren Parker (4-1-1), however, is equally concerned about her media responsibilities.
Asking questions, even about herself, reminded her of being at school when the teacher put you in a tough situation and your mind was blank.
However, for almost an hour, the 29-year-old enthusiastically and extensively told proboxing-fans.com about her path to boxing so far.
It all started, she explained, when a slightly shy 13-year-old girl went to a kickboxing show at a local recreation center.
“The seed was planted when my dad took me with him and I remember seeing these girls and thinking, ‘this is different.’ It looked like fun and I could probably be good [at it].
“But I didn’t pursue anything until I was about 18 and I went to another show and took the bull by the horns and asked one of the girls where they were training, what time they were training, things like that. I dropped in on one of the sessions and really enjoyed it.
“After a few years, one of my friends said, ‘you know, why don’t you try boxing?’ But at the time, I was so in love with kickboxing that it seemed a little intimidating.
“I was taken to Stevenage Boxing Club where I was introduced to Paul Day and I immediately hit it off.
“From day one, I was sparring, getting involved, and over the years everything picked up.”
After developing familial relationships with Paul Day and Paul Webber, Parker loved every second of her amateur boxing – a brief but sweet career spanning 20 fights – but admitted she never considered signing a professional contract.
“I never thought about turning professional until many amateur clubs were considering staying with England Boxing or joining the Boxing Alliance.
“Stevenage was determined to join the Alliance, but that eliminated my competition. One of the guys told me, “We’re entering you in the tournament, but there’s no one else, so you just have to show up and raise your hand.”
“There was talk of the clubs moving and possibly moving to Repton or Hoddesdon, but the need to travel made that a bit unrealistic.”
The options were therefore circumscribed. Parker gave up the sport for some time and took up kickboxing again, but a conversation with Paul Webber tempted her to join the ranks of professional fighters. It’s a decision the 29-year-old has never regretted.
“I was extremely frustrated at the time because it was never part of the plan, but looking at where it took me, I have to be grateful that circumstances pushed me to do it.
“Especially with the current profile of women’s boxing, there couldn’t be a better time to be a professional and I’m really looking forward to the future.”
After two fights in 2018, including a delayed debut against Teodora Hristova, Lauren faced her toughest test in the form of a 3-1 defeat to Dani Hodges.
Hodges won four rounds (39-37), but Paul Day’s players do not believe that this is an correct reflection of the competition.
“This fight was probably one of my best performances… except I didn’t win! I truly believe I won this fight.
“Dani was often ahead, but you only have to look at the photos at the end of the fight to see how it turned out. Dani had been cut, covered in spots and bleeding, and the next day I woke up with a barely evident mark.
“But fair play to her, she’s a good boxer and, you know, after two years I can’t say I’m second-guessing it because that’s how it is in boxing sometimes.”
Fortunately, this blemish on the record isn’t something that’s particularly on Parker’s mind. Now, two years after the defeat, the former Haringey BoxCup champion is keeping an eye on future opportunities.
“I’ve spent so much time since the pandemic started thinking about how much I still have to show, and I actually can’t say I’ve spent too much time thinking about what could have happened. .
“It was a good learning experience [curve] also to show me what some judges prefer to look at, and after the initial period of frustration you can try to take some positives from the experience so that you are not filled with regret.”
Steve Goodwin will be a key figure in creating these future opportunities. Parker initially signed a contract with Mervyn Turner, and after her contract expired, Parker joined Goodwin Boxing, and huge plans are already being made.
“Honestly, I’m very excited because I had a good discussion with Steve. I wanted to sign him considering William [Webber, Paul Webber’s son] is under his banner, which means our little gym sings from the same anthem.
“I feel comfortable that Steve is leading me on the right path and knowing where he wants to take me, and the ideas he brings to the table are really electrifying to me.
“We are looking at a few fights to get me back, but then we want to fight for the titles. Having goals set for myself makes it much easier for me to focus on doing what I need to do.”
Even with the 4-1-1, Lauren Parker has already come a long way from a 13-year-old girl who didn’t have enough confidence to step outside of her comfort zone.
But throughout our conversation, the 29-year-old gave the impression of someone who had only just scratched the surface of what she could achieve.
With Lauren’s career in the safe and sound and reliable hands of Steve Goodwin, Paul Day and Paul Webber, it’s basic to see where her enthusiasm and excitement for the future comes from.
To follow her journey, you can find Lauren on Twitter @LParkerBoxer or Instagram @LaurenParkerBoxer. Lauren is sponsored by; vegan cafe Vutie Beets; JC Parker installations; music producer Mitchell Parker; Look Logos printers and embroiderers and; web designer kelly woodhams.
Written by Oliver McManus.
Natasha Jonas unified the welterweight division by defeating Ivana Habazin by clear points on Saturday to add the WBC title to her IBF crown at the Exhibition Center in Liverpool.
Jonas (16-2-1, 9 KO) was last seen defending her title in January in a hard-fought split decision over Mikaela Mayer, while Habazin (23-6, 7 KO) won the vacant WBC welterweight title in her home country. time out, winning by wide points over Kinga Magyar.
After a technical opening round, Jonas settled into a steady rhythm before landing a powerful right hand in the fourth round that crushed Habazin.
There was a rivalry, but the home favorite was much better in the rallies and seemed to be losing round after round.
This situation lasted until the final bell, when Jonas became the winner by scores of 100-90, 99-91 and 99-92.
Price is closing in on Jonas’ match
Lauren Price definitely stayed on as a collision course with Jonas and easily defended her WBA and IBO welterweight titles after a third-round fight against Bexcy Mateus.
Mateus (7-1, 6 KO) was on board in the first round, after the Welshman landed a powerful left hand, and the Colombian struggled to match Price’s speed.
The same shot caused the 29-year-old to repeat the punch in the second round, and the round later ended when another stinging left hand stunned Meteus and she fell to the canvas, after which the fight was stopped.
Price (8-0, 2 KO) has agreed to face Jonas next, and promoter Ben Shalom revealed it could be announced next week.
Knife edge passes McKenna
Lee Cutler scored an upset victory to claim the silver WBC International welterweight title after winning a majority decision against Stephen McKenna.
McKenna (15-1, 14 KO) was eliminated in the first round, his knee touching the canvas after being tagged, and Cutler (15-1, 7 KO) took full advantage of his opponent’s weakness in the seventh round when his right hand plunged into his knee. The Irishman who ultimately fell once again.
McKenna was relentless in his attacks and landed a huge number of punches.
The balance of 94-94 was surpassed by the scores of 95-93 and 96-92, which ensured the victory for Cutler.
Jeffers stopped Quartey
Mark Jeffers is on track for large fights in 2025 after defeating Joshua Quartey to defend his silver Commonwealth super middleweight title.
A pair of right hands put Quartey (10-1, 9 KO) on the board, and although he broke the count, a well-placed body shot after the restart by Jeffers (19-0, 6 KO) blew the guy away again.
A crazy attack after the restart forced a stoppage.
Riley secures Chamberlain’s face-off with a stoppage
Viddal Riley finished the heavyweight fight and stopped Dan Garber in the second of the scheduled six rounds.
Riley (12-0, 7 KO) hit Garber (7-4, 2 KO) with his right hand, and then his next attack forced the referee’s intervention.
Riley’s next match will be against Isaac Chamberlain on February 1.
Undercard remaining
Mason Cartwright (21-4-1, 8 KO) won all six rounds at super welterweight against Dzmitry Atrokhau (16-25, 7 KO), and Hope lightweight Frankie Stringer (9-0, 1 KO) did the same in the fight against Tatenda Mangombe (3-9-1).
In the flyweight division, Mikie Tallon (6-0) defeated Benn Norman (7-7) with a body shot in the first round of the match, and then settled for a 59-54 victory.
The only fighter to fight four rounds in the super featherweight division was Mason Devine (6-0, 1 KO), who won every session against Jayo Fernando Duran (15-34-1, 14 KO).
Dillian Whyte has revealed his predictions for the hotly anticipated rematch between Oleksandr Usyk and Tyson Fury on December 21.
Fury, who knocked out Whyte at Wembley Stadium in 2022, will seek revenge for the only defeat of his career in just 11 days, after losing to Usyk by split decision earlier this year.
Despite losing the night, “The Gypsy King” was a major success and many are struggling to pick a winner in his second battle against the imperious Ukrainian.
Some experts believe Fury needs to be more aggressive and take the lead if he is to win.
I’m talking to Social boxingWhyte revealed he shared that view, asking the Morecambe man to return to the game plan that saw him destroy Deontay Wilder in the return leg.
“It’s a great fight, man, I’m still trying to think – how will this fight go?
“Okay, Fury can make changes, but Usyk can make changes too. It’s a tough fight, a very, very tough fight for both fighters.
“If I were Fury’s coach, I would tell him he has to play aggressively.
“Fight him like you fought Wilder the second time.
“Bring back the aggression, bring back the tyrant!
“This is heavyweight boxing – you never know.”
It is unclear whether Fury will heed the advice of Whyte and others in the boxing world who have advised him to take the fight to Usyk, but looks noticeably heavier than before the first fight.
What are the changes? ❌@Tyson_Fury says he will exploit exactly the same game plan as the first time when he faces Oleksandr Usyk at the end of the month.
Thinks? 🧐 pic.twitter.com/VtpEwLJkWx
— Professional boxing fans (@ProBoxingFans) December 6, 2024
Win or lose, the 36-year-old could face a long-awaited home fight against Anthony Joshua, even though “A.J.” interrupted defeat against Daniel Dubois in September.
While it may not have been as great a spectacle as it once was, a clash between Joshua and Fury would still be by far the biggest all-British fight in recent memory.
As for Whyte, he returns to the ring next Sunday night and will face Ghanaian heavyweight Ebenezer Tetteh live on DAZN in Gibraltar.
The All-American fight between lightweight world champions Gervonta Davis and Shakur Stevenson is one of the most anticipated fights in all of boxing.
Both Davis and Stevenson are undefeated multi-weight champions and are staples on any respected pound-for-pound list.
With this in mind, you could be forgiven for assuming that the pair locking corners in their prime years is a given, but that doesn’t seem likely to happen in the near future.
“Tank” spoke to the media at the press conference inaugurating his performance March 1 fight with Lamont Roach, and when the prospect of fighting Stevenson arose, he didn’t seem particularly interested.
The Baltimore hitter even went so far as to question what his compatriot did to deserve him.
“What for? Who has Shakur [beat]? What did Shakur do?
“What has he achieved in sports? He didn’t do anything! Juvenile people look better than him!”
“Keyshawn [Davis] you look so much better than that nigga! Shout it out nigga, he ain’t done nothing!
I asked Gervonta about a possible fight with Shakur… #Box #TankRoach pic.twitter.com/T1eNFJ9iIO
— Dwa O Dwa Z.. (@Noo_Barzz) December 3, 2024
“Why the hell are you saying his name?”
Like Davis, Stevenson will also return to action in the first quarter of next year, fighting against up-and-comer Floyd Schofield on the February 22 Riyad season card.
The Newark southpaw has been sidelined since his July decision victory over Artem Harutyunyan after he had to withdraw from a proposed October fight with Joe Cordina due to injury.
Saudi boxing boss Turki Alalshikh has expressed his willingness to have a fight between the two virtuosos, provided both are successful in their upcoming fights.
‼️ His Excellency Turki Alalshikh stated that he wants the Gervonta Davis vs Shakur Stevenson fight: “My plan for Shakur is this fight [vs Floyd Schofield]then William Zepeda, and then let’s see if Tank wants to come on our show.” [@DAZNBoxing] pic.twitter.com/Mmi6hO7Fjo
— Michael Benson (@MichaelBenson) December 3, 2024
While he undoubtedly has the talent to rival Davis, Stevenson is not as commercial a star as his rival, and some critics believe he needs to start giving more entertaining performances if he wants to get substantial names.
Boxing fans furious after ‘terrible attack’ on Tyson Fury vs Oleksandr Usyk fight
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