Billy Joe Saunders wants to get back in the boxing ring after a long break. The former super-middleweight world champion hasn't fought for over three years but says he's ready to make a comeback.
Saunders, who has a record of 30 wins and just one loss, last stepped into the ring in May 2021. That night, he faced Canelo Alvarez and suffered his first defeat. Before that, he'd never lost a professional fight and had picked up impressive wins against Chris Eubank Jr, Andy Lee, David Lemieux, and Martin Murray.
The British boxer held world titles at two weights and was the WBO champion when he faced Alvarez. He'd also won British, European, and Commonwealth belts earlier in his career. After such a long time away, some fans thought Saunders might hang up his gloves for good.
But Saunders says he's not done yet. In a recent interview with IFL TV, he made it clear he wants to fight again:
"I really, really, miss boxing I really want to be part of it. I'll still be the baddest super-middleweight in my opinion, definitely in Britain and Europe."
Saunders says he's been talking about a rematch with Chris Eubank Jr. The two first fought back in November 2014, with Saunders winning by split decision. But he knows he can't jump straight into a big fight after such a long break.
"We were in strong talks with the Eubank's team. We were more or less where we needed to be. The only thing stopping things from progressing was the warm-up fight, you can't expect me to be out the ring three years and just jump into a big fight because of money. I'm not too bothered if I get forgot about or a promoter offers something. We'll see where it goes."
He added: "They [Eubank's team] offered me a lot of money, fair play to them and talks haven't really broken up so there is still something there, I just need a plan in front of me to move forward."
While Saunders plans his return, Eubank Jr might have his hands full. There's talk of him fighting Conor Benn, and former world champion Amir Khan has already given his thoughts on how that fight might go.
