‘Big smoke’ – Tyson Fury welcomes world title fight with Fabio Wardley as comeback looms

Tyson Fury has suggested a fight with Fabio Wardley could be on the cards for later in the year.

Fury has been out of action since suffering back-to-back losses to Oleksandr Usyk in 2024, the most recent coming in December 2024.

AFP

While he vowed to leave his gloves hung up for good after retiring for the fourth time last year, it seems he has had a change of heart.

‘The Gypsy King’ announced at the beginning of January that he will be returning to the sport this year.

As attention turned to who would be the first man facing off with Fury upon his return, the rumour mill has been busy churning out names.

Meanwhile, Fury has shared a tale of the tape comparing him and Wardley on his Instagram story to tease a potential match-up.

He captioned the post: “Big smoke for the GK after a long lay off could be an option later in 2026 god willing.”

Fury could become a three-time heavyweight world champion if he pursues a clash with Wardley and emerges victorious.

Wardley’s last outing saw him claim a brutal stoppage win against Joseph Parker, which set him up to challenge Usyk for his WBO crown.

But after Usyk opted to vacate the red and gold strap, Wardley was upgraded to the WBO heavyweight champion without throwing a punch.

The Ipswich native is yet to defend his title, but has already found himself a prime target for the biggest names in the glamour division.

What is Tyson Fury’s plan for 2026?

It’s understood that Fury’s next outing will be in the first quarter of the year, and the 37-year-old has already returned to training.

Instagram @tysonfury

The Ring reported in December he is also expected to finally share the ring with his long-term rival, Anthony Joshua, in 2026.

However, AJ’s involvement in a tragic car crash that claimed the lives of his two close friends Sina Ghami and Kevin ‘Lateef’ Ayodele has inevitably thrown a fight with Fury into major doubt.

It was reported that Fury would have a warm-up fight before getting a shot at Joshua anyway, following his spell of inactivity.

Before he made his official comeback announcement, Fury suggested a list of names that he would consider fighting.

He said: “If I am to come back to boxing, there’s a lot of massive fights to be made.

“There’s Joshua, the Usyk trilogy, there’s Fabio Wardley, there’s Daniel Dubois, there’s Deontay Wilder… there’s everybody.”