Joseph Parker might fight Tyson Fury after all. The New Zealand heavyweight's manager says Parker is ready to face his friend if it means unifying the heavyweight titles.
Parker used to train with Fury in Morecambe, England. He even lived at Fury's house. A few years back, Parker told talkSPORT Boxing he'd never fight Fury because of their close bond.
"I've always wanted to fight him, because I think he truly is the best of the era and I always like to test myself, but we have a great relationship. He treats me like a younger brother, his whole family looks after me, they're very generous, I base myself in Morecambe. I stay in his house, and train in his gym, so I don't think I'll ever fight him. I'll let him do his thing and I'll get another pathway and try my best to win the other belts if I can."
But things have changed. Parker's manager, David Higgins, told Sky Sports that Parker now wants to be the undisputed champ, no matter what.
"Joseph wants to become undisputed heavyweight world champion. He's going to give it everything until the day he retires so I'd be lying if I didn't say that was the goal. He wants to beat Dubois and then he wants to fight whoever has the other belts and try and unify."
Right now, the heavyweight division is wide open. Fury just lost to Oleksandr Usyk in May. They're set for a rematch this month with the WBC, WBA, and WBO titles on the line. Usyk gave up the IBF belt, which Daniel Dubois now holds.
Parker, a former WBO champ himself, will fight Dubois for the IBF title next February. If he wins and Fury beats Usyk in their December 21 rematch, the two friends might have to decide whether to face each other after all.
It's a big change from Parker's earlier stance. He'll have to weigh his friendship with Fury against his dream of becoming the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.
