Kiwi Joseph Parker is only a Dillian Whyte injury away from a heavyweight title bout against Tyson Fury.
Fury has revealed Parker is on standby as a replacement for Whyte should 'The Body Snatcher' be unable to take to the ring for their WBC heavyweight showdown at London's Wembley Stadium on Sunday (NZ time).
For the past year, Parker has sparred with Fury at the Englishman's Morecambe base under new trainer Andy Lee.
Whyte failed to show for the first pre-fight press conference, as well as this week's open workouts, and Fury said Parker would be a worthy next cab off the rank, if the same were to happen this weekend.
"We always have a standby opponent for these big shows, because you never know what will happen," Fury told iFL TV. "The guy could fall over and break his foot, so there’s always gotta be a standby.
"If Dillian Whyte don't fight, I don't want no rookie bum, I want a top-five man. Joseph Parker is the stand-in opponent for the fight.
"If Dillian Whyte does pull out, I'll pad Joe for the fight and I’ll fight him.
Fury insists it would be "strictly business", if he had to share a ring with the the Kiwi, whom he's formed a friendship with over the past few years.
Parker has been a regular in Fury's pre and post-fight entourages, and a vocal supporter during the the 33-year-old's run to the top of the heavyweight boxing world.
"We've said, 'listen, it's not personal, strictly business'," Fury told iFL TV. "If this fight happens, we've shook hands on it and agreed, then we're going to throw down."
"Joe’s a former world heavyweight champion and highly rated in all the organisations. He's in the top five heavyweights, so there will be no complaining from the fans."
A former WBO champion, Parker last fought for a title against Anthony Joshua in 2018, losing by unanimous decision.
The South Aucklander earned a unanimous decision win over Derek Chisora in their rematch at Manchester in December. He's awaiting confirmation of his next opponent, but is in advanced talks to take on England's Joe Joyce.
Join us on Sunday morning for live updates of the Fury v Whyte WBC world heavyweight title fight
