Joseph Parker has explained that Tyson Fury is in part responsible for the appointment of Andy Lee as the New Zealand heavyweight’s new trainer.
Parker’s victory over Junior Fa in February marked the last time he would use Kevin Barry as trainer, with the pair then going their separate ways.
However Parker has moved swiftly onto a new fight down the line, and is set to meet British heavyweight Derek Chisora on May 1.
Speaking to Sky Sports, Parker said that he had asked WBC champion Tyson Fury for his advice, and he suggested Lee.
"I called Tyson and said: 'I'm looking for a trainer'," Parker said. He said Andy would be perfect. Five days later I was on a plane flying to Ireland. Everything happened fast."
Lee works with Fury’s trainer SugarHill Steward and also has his own group of fighters that he oversees. As a successful middleweight himself, he trained under Steward’s uncle Emanuel Steward at the Kronk gym in Detroit.
"A little bit of Kronk would help change things up," Parker said of the move. "It's exactly what I need for Chisora. It's probably what I needed for Dillian Whyte, to not be bullied and chased and thrown around the ring.
"I didn't prepare that way for the Whyte fight. But I should for this fight."
Parker then said it was time for a change after spending almost a decade with Barry.
"I was with Kevin for eight years so became used to his way of doing things but Andy has shown me a few other things. We clicked from the beginning,” he stated.
"I was so used to the training we had, flying to Vegas, the same routine. I'm not getting younger. I want to achieve in boxing. Kevin and I decided it was a time to try something else.
"This is a new excitement, it is new and different. I'm challenging myself."
Chisora has also swapped trainers, bringing in Buddy McGirt.