DUBAI – Fabio Wardley said he and Frank Warren will meet to determine his next move as the WBO heavyweight champion of the world.
Wardley has been in Dubai this week at the IBA Pro event, where he saw Murat Gassiev claim the WBA regular heavyweight title with victory over Kubrat Pulev.
“We haven’t put a solid plan together. We’re throwing a few broad ideas at each other, but nothing solid to sit down and really assess the landscape,” Wardley told BoxingScene. “When we get back, I'll have a word with the boys and we'll come up with something.”
Wardley knew his O2 Arena bout with Joseph Parker was an important one and that it could have championship ramifications.
The winner was due to become a clear No. 1 contender for Oleksandr Usyk, but Usyk subsequently relinquished the WBO strap and it was awarded to Wardley.
“It feels good,” the new champion said. “I haven't actually put my hands on it [the belt] properly yet, but yeah, it feels good to be a world champion. It feels good to be kind of up there at the top, on top of the game, but there's still a lot more I want to do, a lot more I want to achieve, a lot more big fights out there I want to be having.”
Wardley’s story from white-collar fighter to a leading heavyweight has been well documented. He delivered a wild come-from-behind knockout of Justis Huni earlier in the year and then scalped Parker.
“Look, it was a hard, hard fight,” he said of defeating the veteran New Zealander. “He's one hell of a competitor, one hell of a fighter, wealth of experience, been around the game a long time. There were a lot of moments in that fight where I had to kind of figure out different things and kind of work my way through and just kind of think on the fly and under fire really. But again, it proves I can learn on the job and in the middle of it, come up with something different and kind of turn the tide.”
It was subsequently revealed that Parker tested positive for cocaine on the night; something he stringently denies.
“I think everyone in boxing was pretty shocked,” Wardley said of the news. “I know his character and always assume that that's not never something he would be associated with in that sense. It's surprising but you just have to wait and see and let it play itself out, really. Because we've seen this go left and go right a few times in boxing. So I think it's wise in these situations to kind of withhold judgment until the final proceedings are all gone through and then we can make an informed decision on how we feel about it.”
What has been beyond proof in 2025 is Wardley’s insatiable will to win and dig in when the going gets tough.
For him, it’s normal and something he can’t explain.
Asked where he gets that from, Wardley said: “Yeah, one singular place, I'm not too sure. It's a multitude of feelings, like I have something to prove to everyone else, something to prove to people in boxing, which I feel like I have done since I started my career.
“Again, something to prove to myself and then the other way of just wanting to also prove people right, like my family, friends, team, supporters, everyone that's been saying, ‘Yeah, he can do those things, he can achieve. He is that good.’ It's down to me on the night, on the occasion to prove them people right. So there's a lot of different aspects which pile into it. And the other half of it, I guess, I just like a bit of a scrap.”
Wardley, 30, from Ipswich, is now 20-0-1 (19 KOs), and he is planning on being around for a long time yet.
“There's a lot more to be done,” he insisted. “And I guess that's almost kind of funny to say at this stage in my career after some of the things I've ticked off… headlining, selling out the O2 and then doing a stadium show in my hometown and things like that. There's some huge milestones on there, which a lot of people would be very happy with at this stage of their career. And don't get me wrong, I am as well. But I'm still ambitious enough to think, you know what? There's still a lot more on the table for me.”
On Wardley’s way through he twice boxed Frazer Clarke. The first bout was a Fight of the Year war, scored a draw after 12 torrid rounds; the second saw Wardley storm to an emphatic one-round stoppage in crushing fashion.
There is a fear that Clarke has not emerged from their rivalry the same, having lost a decision to Jeamie TKV in his most recent fight.
Has Wardley taken a lot out of him?
“Maybe. I don't know. There's always different circumstances,” Wardley explained.
“And no one ever knows the full details of what goes on in a camp. And I know that fight got delayed. So maybe having to prolong the camp and drag things out a bit, maybe that played a factor. Who knows? But don't get me wrong. Those two fights, they would have taken a lot out of anybody. So maybe, maybe not.”
That is, of course, of no consequence to Wardley, who is moving on and with a belt in tow. In the social media age, he has been dubbed an “email champion”.
But he went into the Parker fight knowing the stakes were high and that was why he was so happy to roll the dice against Parker.
“Both of us knew what was on the line,” Wardley added. “Hence why we took the fight so seriously and both of us put it on the line and it went the way it did. But yeah, no matter the circumstance, the tag, a paper champion or whatever you want to call it, is always going to apply if you don't win it in the ring. But to me, we knew that was an interim fight going into it. We knew what the stakes were going to be after. And look, if the difference for me is if Usyk would have given up that belt only a few weeks earlier, I would have won it in the ring on the night and no one would have said anything about being a paper champion. It would have been a four [major sanctioning bodies] world champion with all the rights. So to me and my brain and the way I view it, I'm a world champion. With all the respect, Usyk looks like he's going to go in a different direction.”
And that is of “mild frustration” to Wardley, who was hoping to test himself against the very best.
“When you want to fight the best and you want to challenge yourself and they may deviate and do something else, it is frustrating, of course,” he said. “But look, everyone's got to do what's best for them or whatever they think is best for them and best for their careers. So we're just going to move on, pick the next best option around.”
For now, Wardley’s name is being attached to many top heavyweight contenders. Asked for his opinion on future fights with some of them, here are his replies.
“Daniel Dubois.”
“Blockbuster.”
“Parker part two.”
“Maybe.”
“Deontay Wilder.”
“Yeah, definitely.”
“Usyk.”
“A hundred percent, the top of the list.”
“Anthony Joshua.”
“Yeah, massive.”
“Moses Itauma [his stablemate with trainer Ben Davison].
“No, not currently anyways.”
