Kiwi boxing sensation Joseph Parker is holding out hope he can take on heavyweight king and close friend Tyson Fury, should ‘The Gypsy King’ defeat Oleksandr Usyk in a potential unification bout.
Parker (30-3, 21KO) is in action on the undercard of Chris Eubank Jr v Liam Smith, as the New Zealander takes on Jack Massey (20-1, 11KO) in the latter’s heavyweight debut having moved up from cruiserweight.
Watch PPV Boxing: Eubank Jr v Smith LIVE on Main Event available on Kayo & Foxtel, Sunday 22 January from 5am AEDT. ORDER NOW >
It is a crucial bout for Parker, who must get back to winning ways if he is to catapult himself back into contention for a world title after being stopped by Joe Joyce in September last year.
Although the 31-year-old knows he must get past Massey first before he even thinks about what may await him further down the road, Parker holds out hope a dream bout — both professionally and financially — against Fury could take place.
Parker even believes if he asked ‘The Gypsy King’ for a momentary pause on their friendship to trade blows in the ring, he would entertain it.
“Listen, if I said to Tyson, ‘Hey, let’s put our friendship to one side and fight,’ I think he would consider it,” Parker told Ben Damon on the The Main Event Boxing Podcast.
CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE FULL PODCAST!
KSI KO floors Faze Temperrr! | 00:41
MORE COVERAGE
Revealed: Two Tszyu’s fighting – and one more in the crowd – for Aussie world title blockbuster
‘OMG’: Jake Paul’s cheeky post after KSI ‘smoked’ rival with frightening KO
Revealed: How sparring sessions could rob undefeated Aussie of shot at Anthony Joshua
“He’s one of those guys who would give you the opportunity because you deserve it, or give you the opportunity because you need it, or give you the opportunity because you want to look after your family.
“He’s one of those who would just do anything for you, if he could.”
Interestingly enough, it wouldn’t be the first time Parker had posed the question to Fury before.
And had one of ‘The Gypsy King’s’ previous fights fallen through, the Kiwi might have finally got his chance at one of the baddest men on the planet in April last year.
“I’ve said it for years that I’m keen to fight him because I feel that he’s the best in the division, and I always want to test myself against the very best,” Parker said.
“I was on standby to fight him if [Dillian] Whyte didn’t show up to the fight, but everything went to plan and they fought and he got a good win.
“You never know what’s going to happen in the future. At the moment, I’m trying to rebuild and get my way to the top whereas he’s still staying on top.”
You can watch Joseph Parker take on Jack Massey LIVE on Main Event available on Kayo and Foxtel, Sunday 22 January from 5pm AEDT. ORDER NOW >
This news is republished from another source. You can check the original article here