Report: Joseph Parker and Joe Joyce agree to fight this fall

A clash between heavyweight rivals Joseph Parker and Joe Joyce is official.

Parker, a former WBO titlist, and Joyce, a rising star, have struck a deal for a bout that will land in the U.K., possibly on September 24.

ESPN's Mike Coppinger was first to report the story.

Parker recently signed with Boxxer, which has an exclusive contract with Sky Sports, but BT Sport Box Office will televise the scheduled 12-round battle via pay-per-view.

A deal to stage Parker-Joyce has been in the works for the past few months. According to BOXXER promoter Ben Shalom, he submitted an offer to stage the Joyce fight on Sky Sports, which won't happen per ESPN's report. However, they were reportedly still able to get a deal signed, although on a rival network.

"We put in a big offer. That's a fight he [Parker] wants," Shalom told Sky Sports News in June. "He still wants the big fights. We put in a big offer to Joe Joyce."

Joyce (14-0, 13 KOs), 36, who is coming off a fourth-round knockout of Christian Hammer on July 2, is promoted by Frank Warren.

Parker (30-2, 21 KOs) has won six bouts in a row following consecutive defeats to Anthony Joshua and Dillian Whyte back in 2018. He is coming off back-to-back victories over perennial heavyweight contender Dereck Chisora, whom he outpointed in two of his three fights last year. The only fight that didn't come against Chisora, was a 12-round unanimous decision win over Junior Fa in February.