By George Mills, courtesy of The Daily Star

RATED as one of the hottest prospects in world boxing, French Olympic gold medallist Tony Yoka now has a fearsome ally in fellow heavyweight David Haye.

The 24-year-old overcame Anthony Joshua’s sparring partner, Joe Joyce, via split decision in a tightly-contested super-heavyweight showdown at Rio 2016, following in the footsteps of some of the sport’s all-time greats.

Wladimir Klitschko, Aleksandr Povetkin and Lennox Lewis – as well as Joshua himself – have all gone on to enjoy illustrious careers following gold medal success.

And Richard Schaefer, head of Ringstar promotions, who recently joined forces with David Haye’s Hayemaker promotions, said he envisions a bright future for the young Frenchman.

“He is such a gifted athlete. He’s young still, as a heavyweight, he’s 24,” he told Boxing News.

“There’s going to be not really a big rush, rushing him through the ranks, but really building him up, building him up in France.”

With a lucrative television deal lined up in partnership with Canal Plus, one of France’s biggest broadcasters, a future fight with fellow Olympic champion Anthony Joshua could well materialise over the next couple of years.

But before the prospect of a European super-fight can be entertained, Schaefer hopes Yoka can help restore boxing to the forefront of French sport.

“It used to have a rich tradition, boxing in France, and I think just like you’ve seen here, you’ve seen what Anthony Joshua has done, he’s really elevated boxing in the UK to a different level,” he continued.

“Boxing was always big, but I think it was really Anthony Joshua who elevated it even to a different level and I think the same is going to happen in France.”

Elsewhere this week, David Haye declared he could have only five more fights left in his boxing career as he begins to eye up his future as a promoter.

Speaking at the announcement of Ringstar’s partnership with Hayemaker, the 36-year-old said: “Realistically I’d say five fights in my mind is all I need to prove what I need to prove.

“Look at the champions, you’ve got Anthony Joshua, he’s probably the first target as he’s the guy who’s got all this momentum behind him. There’s rumbling’s over Tyson Fury making a comeback.

“If he comes back I’m sure that he’ll want a big payday as he hasn’t had one yet. So I’m not sure what his situation is yet, so I’m pretty sure if he makes a comeback if it’s not myself, it’ll be Anthony Joshua.”