Joseph Parker could have sat back and waited for Oleksandr Usyk, but that isn’t in his nature.The WBO interim title holder had already secured his mandatory position to face Usyk next for the undisputed crown.Parker is Usyk’s WBO mandatoryMatchroomYet, upon hearing that the Ukrainian would be unable to take up the challenge this year, Parker signed to fight fearsome puncher Fabio Wardley on October 25.Explaining his decision to risk his mandatory status during an exclusive interview with talkSPORT.com, Parker said: “As a fighter, you can train as much as you like, but all you want to do is fight.“If I could fight three or four times a year, that would be amazing, but fighters nowadays are fighting once or twice a year.“I just want to stay active. I’ve got two or three good years left in me, so I want to fight as many times as I can and fight the best in the world.“I know it is a risk, but there is always a risk in every fight that you take.“In order to get to the top, you have to fight whoever is in front of you, and right now that is Fabio Wardley.“Activity has served Parker well over the last few years.After falling to the third defeat of his career against Joe Joyce in September 2022, the New Zealander was written off by several members of the boxing fraternity.However, an impressive six-fight winning streak, which includes notable triumphs over Deontay Wilder, Zhilei Zhang and Martin Bakole, has established Parker as the glamour division’s clear No.1 contender in the space of just 25 months.Will Oleksandr Usyk fight Joseph Parker next?In July, Parker’s position was officially recognised by the WBO’s Championship Committee, who ordered Usyk to defend his belts against the Kiwi.PAParker will fight Wardley while Usyk recovers from his back injury[/caption]Those plans were subsequently delayed when Usyk was granted a three-month extension to negotiations due to a lingering back injury.Additionally, the WBO has informed the pound-for-pound king that he must, under no uncertain terms, face the winner of Parker vs Wardley if he hopes to keep hold of the red and gold strap.Despite this, Parker still isn’t sure he will get a crack at Usyk should he get his hand raised next month.“The fight [with Usyk] probably won’t happen until next year if it even happens,” added Parker.“Waiting around isn’t going to do me any good, especially when I don’t know what is going to happen.“I’m not sure what his plans are. I don’t know when he wants to fight again or who he wants to fight.Here’s how Usyk and Parker measure up“Maybe it is a financial thing, who can he fight that makes him the most money? If he is going to have one or two more fights, he will want the most money he can get…“At the end of the day, it doesn’t frustrate me because it isn’t in my control.“All I can control is what I am doing back home in New Zealand with my family and what I do in training.”