Once his purse of nearly $1.2 million was slashed to barely 15 percent of what it once was, that math made little sense to Andrade, who therefore passed on an opportunity to box Parker for the WBO interim super middleweight title November 5.
That decision extended Andrade’s layoff to over a year, as the former WBO middleweight champion hasn’t fought since he knocked out Ireland’s Jason Quigley in the second round of their 160-pound title fight in November 2021 at SNHU Arena in Manchester, New Hampshire.
Andrade (31-0, 19 KOs) is preparing to return to the ring January 7, but the Providence, Rhode Island native is still perplexed by those that have criticized him for not fighting Parker after a second purse bid brought his purse down to $183,000.
“You got people that are smart,” Andrade told BoxingScene.com. “You got people that just like don’t really know what they’re talking about. You got fight fans that’s just oblivious to things. I’m not gonna go fight over in this guy’s country for $150,000, when we were supposed to fight the first time I was supposed to make like $1-point-something [million].
Due to injury, I just needed some more time, just like if it would’ve happened to somebody else. That’s just not happening.”
Andrade originally was due to make $1,192,132.50 for facing Parker. As the WBO middleweight champion who moved up in weight for their mandated match, he was entitled to 65 percent of Queensberry Promotions’ winning bid of $1,834,050.
Parker-Andrade was scheduled for May 21 in Derby, England, but it was postponed because Andrade sustained a shoulder injury while training. Once their fight was delayed, another purse bid was scheduled, after Andrade was no longer promoted by Matchroom Boxing, which initially bid $1,750,000.
Queensberry won the second purse bid with an offer of only $305,000. Matchroom didn’t participate in the second Andrade-Parker purse bid, nor did any other promoter.
Andrade’s adjusted 60-percent cut from that winning bid would’ve been $183,000.
Though the Andrade-Parker winner would’ve become a mandatory challenger for one of Canelo Alvarez’s four super middleweight titles, Andrade realized Alvarez still might not have fought him. The Mexican superstar previously stated that he would never fight Andrade and called him a “horrible” fighter.
“It was crazy,” Andrade said. “And then, on top of that, people think because it was for the interim WBO [title] that was supposed to guarantee me a Canelo fight. No, it doesn’t. It does not guarantee me a Canelo fight. Only Canelo will make that clear. Yes or no? And his favorite word is ‘horrible.’ Undefeated, 31-0, 2008 Olympian – anyway.”
Parker (22-1, 16 KOs) instead fought fellow Brit John Ryder (32-5, 18 KOs), who topped Parker by fifth-round technical knockout because Parker suffered a hand injury November 26 at O2 Arena in London.
The 34-year-old Andrade will make his super middleweight debut against Demond Nicholson (26-4-1, 22 KOs) on January 7 in Washington, D.C. Their 10-round bout will be part of the Gervonta Davis-Hector Luis Garcia undercard at Capital One Arena (Showtime Pay-Per-View; $74.99).
Keith Idec:
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