Tyson Fury to sign with Frank Warren ahead of long-awaited return to the ring

Fury has not been in the ring since dethroning Wladimir Klitschko in 2015, but will today announce a summer comeback bout as he resumes his eclectic career

Tyson Fury is poised to make his long-awaited return to the ring (Getty)

Tyson Fury has finalised an agreement to fight under Frank Warren on both BT Sport and BoxNation and will make his long-awaited return to the ring this year, The Independent understands.

Fury, the former unified heavyweight champion of the world, has been inactive since outpointing Wladimir Klitschko in Dusseldorf in November 2015.

In June 2016 he was charged with testing positive for a banned substance prior to that fight, although Fury insisted he “never knowingly or deliberately committed a violation”. He accepted a backdated two-year ban at the end of last year, allowing him to resume his career.

Fury has also struggled with chronic depression and recreational drug abuse during his spell away from the ring, but returned to training in the new year and has made good progress at Ricky Hatton’s gym in Manchester.

He sparred with Lucas Browne ahead of the Australian’s fight with Dillian Whyte and has grown increasingly vocal about an impending return, repeatedly calling on unified champion Anthony Joshua to fight him before the end of the year.

“I could probably fight this weekend,” he commented recently. “It's been a long time coming. My ambition is to get in the ring again and get under those lights. I told them recently I want to get some baby oil on, shining, glistening, looking the part.

“I’m even lifting a few weights now. I used to call Joshua a bodybuilder, but I'm starting to look like a bodybuilder now. Taking my protein shakes, getting to bed early and dreaming about smashing people's faces in.”

Warren has advised Fury that he needs two or three preparation fights ahead of a possible unification showdown with Joshua in 2019, with a comeback bout likely to be scheduled this summer.

Shannon Briggs could be next up for Tyson Fury (Getty)

There are no shortage of opponents willing to take on Fury as he looks to quickly shake off any ring rust, but the American veteran Shannon Briggs is thought to be at the front of the queue.

“This is a message to Shannon ‘The Cannon’ Briggs,” Fury said on social media in February. “First of all ‘Let’s go Champ’. Second of all, I’m going to send you a contract, get you signed up good and proper so you know you’ve got something to train for.

“Keep yourself in shape, get fit, pump a bit of iron, do a bit of sparring – you can even come and do a bit of training with me if you want, no problem.”