Tyson Fury has announced he will return to boxing in 2026 nearly a year after he announced his latest retirement from the ring.After a second points loss to his heavyweight rival Oleksandr Usyk for three of the four major world titles in December 2024, Fury confirmed the end of his professional career the following month. But Fury, who said he was bowing out of the sport after beating Dillian Whyte in April 2022 only to return later in the year, posted on Instagram on Sunday: “2026 is that year. Return of the mac.“Been away for a while but I’m back now, 37 years old and still punching. Nothing better to do than punch men in the face and get paid for it.”Fury’s history of retirement followed by a U-turn meant there was scepticism that he has permanently finished a career that had brought 34 wins in 37 fights and two stints as a world champion. He was incensed at the judges’ decisions in his twin defeats by Usyk, the only boxer to beat Fury, who said in last year’s retirement message: “I’m going to end with this: Dick Turpin wore a mask.”But the British boxer fuelled speculation of another comeback over the festive period by posting several clips on social media of himself in training. Despite insisting he had bowed out of the sport, Fury has been repeatedly linked with a long-awaited bout against Anthony Joshua, another former two-time world heavyweight champion.The pair agreed to a fight in August 2021 when they held all the major world titles between them, but that was scuppered when Fury was ordered to take on Deontay Wilder for a third time by an arbitration hearing.Plans were in the pipeline for Joshua and Fury to have tune-ups in the early part of this year before finally facing off against each other, either in late summer or towards the back end of 2026. However, the car crash in Nigeria last Monday, which left Joshua injured and led to the deaths of two close friends and team members, means the 36-year-old’s next move in the sport is unclear.If Joshua is unavailable, Fury could seek a trilogy fight against the WBC, WBA and IBF titlist Usyk or an all-British contest with the WBO champion Fabio Wardley. A win over either would see Fury become a three-time world heavyweight champion.