By Jake Donovan

Joseph Parker officially moved into title contention after surviving a stiff test from veteran contender Carlos Takam in their heavyweight title eliminator Saturday evening at Vodafone Events Centre in Manukau City, New Zealand.

Scores were 116-112 (twice) and 115-113 in favor of Parker, the unbeaten local hero who is now the mandatory challenger to the heavyweight title held by England's Anthony Joshua. 

The final scores were as accurate as the night was difficult for Parker, but a tough test that he needed to pass in order to prove his worth among the best heavyweights in the world.

Getting there required a few new experiences - like losing the first round of any given prizefight. The unbeaten local hero had stormed through his level of opposition in his first four years in the pro ranks, but found himself down 10-9 after three minutes of action. 

Takam represented a major step up in class and, thus, figured to give the 24-year a stiff challenge. The visiting heavyweight from France by way of Cameroon did so by snapping his left hand and offering constant lateral movement, disallowing Parker to shoot off his jab and plant his feet long enough to land anything of substance. 

It could have been so much worse in the hands of a lesser official. Parker drew a collective gasp from his local supporters when hitting the canvas in round two, a sequence correctly ruled by referee Wes Melton as a slip. Parker dusted himself off and slowly began imposing his will on a still mobile Takam, doing so by cutting off the ring and letting his power punches rip more so than was the case in the preceding round. 

The theme for much of the rest of the evening was Parker simply putting in more work while Takam was either looking for one big opening or lacked the stamina to stick to his game plan for 12 hard rounds. 

Whatever the case, it cost the 35-year old heavyweight a long-coveted shot at a heavyweight title.

The closest he came was when he and Alexander Povetkin fought for the World Boxing Council (WBC) "Silver" title, essentially a glorified title eliminator. He reached that point by fighting then-unbeaten Mike Perez to a draw in what most felt should have been a clean win, followed by a wide 12-round decision over Tony Thompson. 

For eight rounds, Takam gave Povetkin all that he could handle with the fight dead even on the scorecards to that point before getting dropped twice and landing on the very wrong end of the Knockout of the Year.

Despite the fight ending, Takam had shown on that night and in preceding fights that he belongs among the top heavyweights. He had a golden opportunity to do so again versus Parker, but at two separate points in the night had given away a chunk of rounds by means of not letting his hands go.

It's a decision that will forever come back to haunt him, but at least partially attributed to what Parker was able to bring to the table that prompted Takam to shut down in such manner.

For those looking to discredit Parker's performance (such as the folks at Sky Sports, who picked up the broadcast since the winner factors into the career of Joshua, clearly their heavyweight darling given the evening's call), there arose the concern of stamina issues as he began to fight with mouth agape in the middle rounds. 

Takam picked up on this, at which point he increased his workrate and fought in a far more aggressive manner. He was able to win rounds clean whenever he employed this strategy, but the issue was offering a sustained attack long enough to upset the apple cart.

Parker rebounded from a rough patch and turned the tide as the fight crept toward the championship rounds. Takam was there to remind him every step of the way that it was never going to be easy, but many will argue that he let a golden opportunity slip away by not pressuring the young contender. 

The work that Parker was able to put in down the stretch was enough to where he could afford losing the final round and still leave as the winner and with a guaranteed title shot in his future. Takam (33-3-1, 25KOs) gave it one last shot in the closing three minutes, but needed that rally to happen a few rounds earlier in order to provide the impact he sought.

Parker improves to 19-0 (16KOs) in going 12 rounds for the first time in his career. The decision verdict snaps a seven-fight knockout streak, not requiring final scores in a fight since his 10-round nod over Sherman Williams in their Oct. '14. 

With the win, Parker is now the mandatory challenger for the International Boxing Federation (IBF) title held by Joshua, who next faces Dominic Breazeale on June 25 at home in London. A showdown between Joshua and Parker will not be due until next January, leaving the unbeaten titlist room for at least one more voluntary defense should he get past Breazeale.

It also allows Parker the opportunity to take a stay busy fight (or two) in the interim - unless of course the two sides agree to meet before the eventually imposed deadline. 

Jake Donovan is the managing editor of BoxingScene.com. Follow his shiny new Twitter account: @JakeNDaBox_v2