Former world heavyweight champion Lucas Browne is in top shape ahead of his comeback fight this month.
Browne, 39, was toppled by Dillian Whyte in London earlier this year. Lethargic and heavy during the contest, Browne was taken out devastatingly.
Fast forward six months, and after recovering from an injury, ‘Big Daddy’ looks tremendous just one week away from his return.
On September 28 at the Gold Coast Convention Centre in Broadbeach, Browne dons the gloves for the 27th time against Julius Long.
New Zealand-based Long, 41, is simply a stop-gap for Browne, who is eyeing bigger tests than the scheduled eight-rounder.
Talk of another UK outing or a potentially huge down under collision with Joseph Parker has been doing the rounds, And judging by Browne’s current condition, the tough Aussie would be good to go before the end of 2018.
An out-of-character performance against Whyte still hurts Browne. So he’s determined to write another victorious chapter before the end of his career.
Before Whyte, Browne stood on the verge of a final eliminator to reclaim a world title, but it all went up in smoke at the O2 Arena.
A routine win has to be a given against veteran Long, who has 20 losses on his record. As all eyes are on Browne, it will be the manner of the performance which will be of most interest.
Previously trading blows with Long in 2015, Browne won via ninth-round knockout. He’ll be expected to finish the job earlier on home turf.
With only six fights since he was 35, Browne knows he will need to be more active as he attempts to get back in the mix again.
Lucas Browne’s last six:
March 2018 (264lbs) – Dillian Whyte LOST / KO6
June 2017 (259lbs) – Matthew Greer WON / KO2
March 2016 (250lbs) – Ruslan Chagaev WON / TKO10
WBA heavyweight title
August 2015 (255lbs) – Julius Long WON / KO9
November 2014 (255lbs) – Chauncy Welliver WON / RET5
August 2014 (263) – Andriy Rudenko WON / UD
