Fuel has been added to the fire after Joseph Parker told The AM Show that Anthony Joshua refused to shake his hand at Wednesday's pre-fight press conference.
The two heavyweights met face-to-face after their final pre-fight press conference. Both fighters engaged in an intense stare down, and while the Kiwi was the one gazing up at his taller opponent, Joshua was the first to shy away from the encounter.
The mouthwatering match-up at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff on April 1 (NZ time) is an opportunity for one of these unbeaten fighters to unify the three major heavyweight titles, with Joshua currently holding the WBA and IBF belts, while Parker holds the WBO.
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Before the stare-down, Parker went to shake Joshua's hand, but the Brit refused and that rubbed the 27-year-old Parker the wrong way.
"I can feel with some of the things we've been saying he's a bit angry and tense," Parker told the AM Show.
"I could feel his body language and I went to shake his hand, and he wouldn't even shake my hand. He should have shook that hand properly because now I'm angry myself.
"It is a basic rule if somebody puts their hand out you have to shake I, but he brushed it to the other side. It's a bit rude, but I forgive him."
Despite heading into the highly anticipated bout as the underdog, Parker is determined as ever to come out on top.
"I've trained for 12 rounds, so my plan is to go out there and execute the plan put in place.
"I know if I catch him good, he is going to go down, and if he doesn't go down, I'm going to chase him around until he goes down.
"I have my family friend, and my crew keeping me relaxed. We are going to take it easy until fight day and then it's time to go to war."
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