TYSON FURY has begun training with Anthony Joshua’s pal Martin Bakole as he continues his preparations to face Dillian Whyte.
The Gypsy King defends his WBC crown against his fellow Brit at Wembley on April 23 in a bumper heavyweight bout.
Martin Bakole has started sparring with Tyson Fury as the pair posed for this photo
The Gypsy King battles Dillian Whyte at Wembley on April 23
The 33-year-old has drafted in several big names to help him get ready for Whyte on his training camp.
Jarod Anderson and David Adeleye are both being used for sparring sessions with the 6ft 9in champ.
And he has also turned to Bakole, who is good friends with fierce rival Joshua.
Now a photo of the pair inside the ring and with gloves on has been shared from inside his Morecambe base.
Heavyweight contender Bakole has previously sparred both AJ and Oleksandr Usyk.
The Congolese powerhouse, 28, has tasted victory 17 times from his 18 pro bouts, 13 by knockout.
The only blotch on his record came against Michael Hunter in October 2018.
Bakole has been used by Joshua on several times with the pair even becoming good friends.
Bakole is the son of the ruler of the Kananga province in the Congo has boxing and Irn Bru running through his royal blood after moving to Scotland to chase his dreams.
When big brother Ilunga Makabu came to Goodison Park in 2016 to take on Tony Bellew, Bakole came along and stayed in the UK before quickly becoming one of AJ’s favourite sparring partners.
But it did not stop him from joining Usyk’s camp to help mimic AJ ahead of the Ukrainian’s victory of AJ last September.
Now Fury will be hoping that the fighter, who is of similar build to Whyte, can help him topple his fellow Englishman.
He was last in action a week prior to Usyk’s victory at Tottenham when he defeated Haruna Osumanu via first round KO.
- What do we know so far about Fury vs Whyte? All the date, venue and TV info as it is revealed
