Fury’s return long overdue

The long awaited announcement of Tyson Fury’s return to the ring moved one step closer last week.

The self-styled‘Gypsy King’is free to resume his boxing career after accepting a backdated two-year doping ban.

His stunning upset victory over Wladimir Klitschko in 2015 was his last fight before beginning his legal battle with UK Anti-Doping (Ukad).

In that time a lot has changed in the heavyweight division.

Britain has a new boxing hero with Anthony Joshua packing out stadiums and establishing himself as the number one draw in the division.

Like Fury, Joshua also notched up a win against Klitschko but the manner of both victories couldn’t be more different.

On that night in Dusseldorf, Fury turned the boxing world on its head by staying out of the reach of‘Dr Steelhammer’ and produced a boxing masterclass to grab the WBA, IBF and WBO titles from Klitschko after a decade of dominance.

Meanwhile, Joshua was involved in what could be 2017’s fight of the year hauling himself off the canvas to stop the former champ in the 11th round in a pulsating clash which had everything a boxing fan would want to see.

The new year should see WBA and IBF titlist Joshua face off against WBO champ Joseph Parker with AJ’s promoter Eddie Hearn already discussing unifying the division by taking on American Deontay Wilder who holds the WBC strap.

But the fight we all want to see is the Olympic champ against Fury, a man who had his titles stripped from him before he could defend them.

While AJ was winning both the heavyweight belts and the hearts and minds of the British public, Fury was battling his own demons.

The legal battle with Ukad, coupled with well publisised mental health problems has cost the former champ two years of his career.

Assuming the British Boxing Board of Control allow Fury to regain his licence at a meeting in January, the public’s thirst for AJ v Fury will go into overdrive.

There’s no doubt that Fury will need a couple of fights to get himself back into peak condition.

It has been well documentated he needs to shed several stone in weight before he gets

Titles stripped before he could defend them.