By Chris Barclay

New Zealand heavyweight boxer Joseph Parker has scans scheduled for both elbows in a bid to rectify nagging joint pain ahead of next month's fight with Solomon Haumono in Christchurch.

Parker's preparations for the bout against the Auckland-born former rugby league player escalate when sparring begins at trainer Kevin Barry's base in Las Vegas on Wednesday (NZ time).

While that hasn't been jeopardised, Barry is keen to learn the cause of discomfort that occasionally saw Parker drop his gloves unacceptably low before he extended his professional record to 19-0 with a unanimous decision over French Cameroonian Carlos Takam in Auckland on May 21.

Parker has been troubled by sore elbows since he beat Daniel Martz by TKO in Hamilton last December, with the problem being exacerbated by an unusually long 12-week lead-in to the Takam fight.

?He needed his left elbow iced between rounds against Takam and after regular treatment by a neuromuscular physician in Las Vegas, MRI scans will be taken on Saturday [NZ time].

"We've iced them, heated them, used anti-inflammatories," said Barry, who was concerned the injury blunted the effectiveness of Parker's double jab combination.

He felt Parker's hand speed was a contributing factor, and that strength could not be compromised ahead of the July 21 encounter with Haumono.

"When you have that sort of speed the hyperextension is something that you've got to be careful of. If you miss the target you're going to give yourself a little tweak," he said.

Parker, who appeared untroubled by the impediment when he had a technical session in the ring with Barry on Tuesday [NZT], was optimistic.

"I think it's just overuse, I think the break has given it some time to heal."

Parker had a two-week break in Dubai and Los Angeles after beating Takam to become the mandatory challenger for Anthony Joshua's IBF heavyweight belt.

He returned to training last week and started a four-day detox on Tuesday [NZ time] to cleanse his system before sparring intensifies.

Parker, who has been reunited with Polish-born Nigerian training partner Izu Ogonoh after the fellow heavyweight's two-month commitment to Poland's Dancing with the Stars, has had an extensive debrief of the Takam fight with Barry, who said the 24-year-old would not be resting on his laurels.

"It was a great result for someone who's been fighting as a pro for three-and-a-half years but for me there were so many things in that fight that he could have done better. He could have made it easier for himself," Barry said.

"The double jab is the key, that's what won the later rounds for, and won us the fight.

"He went away from the double jab in the early rounds and he spent too much time on the ropes.

"We trained in Vegas knowing the only time Takam would be able to get him was on the ropes, never when Joe was in the centre of the ring.

"There were also a couple of times when he was under pressure where instead of making himself smaller he made himself taller and put his chin in the air.

"The hands were down a little low. We spent the whole training camp with his hands up.

"During the fight they were very low. I know part of that was the elbow but we can't afford to do that with the likes of Anthony Joshua. You can't in invite a guy with that height and reach and power in his right hand to drop your hands low."