WBO champion Joseph Parker turns down Tyson Fury's sparring offer

Kiwi WBO heavyweight champion Joseph Parker won't be taking up Tyson Fury's offer to be a sparring partner in preparations for his unification fight against Anthony Joshua.

The 26-year-old is not convinced the 6ft9 Briton offers much insight into the type of bout they can expect in Cardiff.

Speaking to Andrew Gourdie and Jim Kayes on RadioLIVE, Parker admits he appreciates the support, but is happy with the sparring partners they have assembled.

"Tyson Fury's a great guy, but with all due respect to him, I don't think it's the right person to spar because he moves around well for a big guy and he doesn't come forward, and he's a lot taller.

"So I think Kev [Kevin Barry] and our team have done some research and we found guys that we think that doesn't have everything Joshua has, but each of them have bits that we can see or help us prepare for what he brings.

"We want guys to come forward and we can just smash them, and for them to throw everything at us - the kitchen sink - and just try and knock us out. But with Fury, as the fighter he is, he's a smart fighter who doesn't stand there, who doesn't absorb a lot of punches and likes to move."

Parker instead wants boxers who will bring a certain level intensity during sparring, and take punishment as good as they give it. He believes that will be key to beating Joshua and becoming the undisputed heavyweight champion of the world.

"He's dominated fighters that stand in front of him, that don't move - all they do is protect themselves and I think a lot of fighters already go into the ring scared because of the power he possesses," Parker says.

"I want to fight a fight that's going to be a fast-paced fight.

"I think movement, speed and just different angles - I think that's how we are going to attack Joshua."

In what would be the biggest fight of his career by some distance, Parker won't completely rule out bringing in Fury, but he is doing it for experience rather than frame.

"I think a person that has already been there, done that, to have him around so he can say some encouraging things, he knows how the opposition, a lot of them, how they roll and what they do."