Joseph Parker hopes that former heavyweight champion Tyson Fury will attend his WBO title defence against Hughie Fury, and has said to Sky Sports that a fight with the former champion could possibly “be an option".

The 25-year-old New Zealander will fight Hughie Fury in Auckland on May 6, setting up his first title defence fight after winning the WBO heavyweight belt last year, after he successfully defeated Mexican Andy Ruiz. 

Interestingly, the WBO heavyweight was vacated by Hughie Fury’s cousin Tyson during his battle with depression and drug abuse.

Speaking to Sky Sports about Tyson Fury’s return to boxing, Parker said: "He will get a good reception. He's the man who beat the champ, so in everyone's eyes he is still the champ in recess.

"It will be great to have him there, great to have him down in New Zealand. We exchanged messages on Twitter, but it will be good to meet him. People love him.”

Tyson has made it known that he is coming back to boxing in order to regain his relinquished titles, making a fight between the two fighters likely.

However, Parker is keenly aware that he first priority is to get past Tyson’s younger cousin Hughie in Auckland on May 6.

"It might be an option, but first I have to get past his cousin," said Parker.

"I don't want to look in the future. There is always opportunities of fighting this person and that person, but you can't really look at it until you get past the person in front of you. Full focus on Fury and after that we can look at the different options that we have."

The younger Fury is himself a substantial challenge for the 25-year-old New Zealander.

Hughie’s fight record so far is impressive. 20 fights, 20 wins, 10 by knockout, and a gold medal at super heavyweight during the Youth World Champions in Yerevan in 2012.

Speaking about the fight, Parker’s trainer Kevin Barry said that he hoped the older Fury would be in attendance on May 6.

"I hope he does make the trip down there," said Barry.

"It will be great for Hughie; it will be great for the promotion to have him there.”

The New Zealander’s trainer continued to speak warmly about Tyson, thanking him for the opportunity to fight for the title in the first place, and stated that a far as he’s concerned, Tyson Fury will be received warmly by Parker and his team.

"As far as the Joe Parker team, we will welcome him with open arms. It was because of him that we had the opportunity to fight Andy Ruiz. It's because of him that the heavyweight division became exciting. We love him for that."