Tyson Fury sparring partner Martin Bakole has claimed the Briton was 'not 100 per cent focused' for his victory over Francis Ngannou in October.
And he hopes the Briton is upping his game as his crunch clash with Oleksandr Usyk moves closer.
Fury was knocked down in round three of his fight with Ngannou, though did eventually end up winning via split decision.
His underwhelming performance has seen him widely criticised, with some believing Usyk will have it easy next month.
Boxing news: Tyson Fury was 'not 100 per cent focused' for his win over Francis Ngannou
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Bakole is a regular sparring partner of Fury's.
And he's now admitted he felt the Gypsy King was 'not 100 per cent focused' for his victory over Ngannou.
Speaking to IFL TV, he said: “To be honest, I was in Tyson Fury’s camp.
"If you watch my interview [at the event] when people are asking me, I was saying I will not be surprised to see Ngannou drop Tyson Fury, because, to be honest, Tyson was not 100% focused in the gym.
"For me, my opinion is the signed contract with Usyk affected his mind for the Ngannou fight.”
He continued: “I’ve never seen Tyson training like that.
"He was doing four rounds, six rounds in the gym for sparring … Maybe he’s watching this and knows he wasn’t 100 per cent focused.
"That’s not the Tyson Fury I know when he was preparing for Klitschko, Chisora, and Dillian Whyte.
"This was different.”
Fury, to his credit, appears to be responding well to criticism.
The 35-year-old has been spotted in the gym looking leaner than before.
Fury has also taken to social media to update fans, showing him and his camp climbing a mountain in preparation.
The Briton is confident of 'splattering' Usyk next month, with their battle due to take place in Saudi Arabia.
But he also thinks that, if he comes out on top, there will be a public backlash.
"I'll tell you now, what people are going to say when I splatter Usyk," he said, per Saddoboxing.
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Boxing news: Tyson Fury has been accused of not training enough for his narrow win over Francis Ngannou
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"'He was too small, it was a mismatch, he was never any good for Tyson, it was a mismatch'.
"Chisora I thought beat Usyk anyway."
Meanwhile, Ngannou has claimed he expects a rematch with Fury to happen.
Speaking about his upcoming fight with Anthony Joshua, the former MMA man said: “I win this fight, I’m fighting Fury, period.
“Whether or not he has the belt.
Boxing news: Tyson Fury and Oleksandr Usyk will meet in Saudi Arabia next month
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"The thing with the title, and this is a system that I want I don’t wanna fall into anymore.
"It’s like, Okay. When you start a run, then you’re gonna make concessions with maybe an organization or a title organisation.
"You have to fit into something and I would just wanna be free and fight.
“I don’t wanna owe anything to, uh, anybody or to respond to anybody. Right?
"So, uh, I don’t want that political stuff, like, with the title and this. Obviously, if the title is on the line and no string is attached, yes, of course, I’ll grab it. It’s good for the decoration.”
