FINALLY then, we have it confirmed. Tyson Fury’s wildly anticipated rematch with Deontay Wilder will take place on February 22 at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas.

It means that barring injury or mishap in training camp, these two current undefeated heavyweights, who also happen to be among the most colourful tha boxing has ever produced, will meet in the centre of the ring with more than Wilder’s WBC title or Fury’s unofficial lineal title on the line. 

For this, to be sure, is a contest that has “legacy fight” written all over it — the outcome certain to enter the annals of the sport’s history as no other heavyweight clash of recent times has.

Fury, of course, already has such a legacy fight on his record — this in the shape of his victory over Wladimir Klitschko back in 2015, when in devasating fashion he broke the heart of the Ukrainian future Hall of Famer over 12 rounds in his adopted backyard of Germany, ending Klitschko’s nine-year unbeaten record with a display of stick-and-move boxing that belied the giant’s size and dimensions.

Fast forward three years to 2018, and given the preternatural nature of his performance in his first meeting with Wilder at the Staples Centre in downtown Los Angeles in December 2018 — which came after being out of action for some three years, and after losing nine stone in bodyweight in just two of those years — we can actually be justified in expecting the Wilder rematch not only to go down as a legacy fight in terms of the outcome, but also as a classic when it comes to the fight itself. 

In rising from the canvas in the last round of that memorable initial encounter, which ended in controversy as a draw on the judges’ scorecards, Fury achieved the status of boxing legend in his own lifetime. 

Yet, even so, with the recent drastic changes he’s made to his training set-up, the ability to rise from the canvas after being nailed by one of the most fearsome one-punch-knockout heavyweights to occupy a boxing ring is clearly not enough where he’s concerned. 

This is the only context in which Fury’s decision to part company with trainer Ben Davison can be understood. It was a move which nobody saw coming, as was his decision to place himself in the care of Javan “Sugar Hill” Steward from his old Kronk Gym days for the rematch. 

It’s also been reported that former Irish world middleweight champion Andy Lee has joined Fury’s training team which, given Lee’s pedigree as a former luminary of Kronk Gym in Detroit himself, carries with it the whiff of unimpeachable logic.

As for Davison, he is justly credited with playing a major part in helping to bring Fury back from the brink. Over the five fights he was in Fury’s corner, from the start of his comeback to now, you always got the sense that he was more than a trainer to the Gypsy King. 

Companion, friend, therapist, confidant — those things and more is how their relationship appeared from the outside looking in — and so it’s to be hoped that the split has been as amicable as both have made out.

What is certain is that Fury took a massive gamble in going with such a young and inexperienced unknown as his trainer for his comback, and no-one could argue that Davison did not embrace the opportunity to prove himself at the highest level.

Under Davison’s tutelage, Fury’s style emphasised his sublime boxing and footwork, constantly changing the angle with a premium on avoiding incoming. 

It involved him staying on his toes and countering with eye-catching, if not devastating, combinations. Now, however, other voices would appear to have won Fury’s ear, winning him round to the virtues of planting the feet and loading up on his shots with a view to hurting and perhaps stopping Wilder in the rematch. 

One of those voices was Freddie Roach, who was in Fury’s corner assisting Davison against Wilder in 2018. In a controversial post-fight interview, he argued that Fury could have stopped Wilder on the night and that Davison’s tactics were wrong. 

Then we have John Fury, Tyson’s rambunctious old man, who did not hold back in his criticisms of Davison after the Otto Wallin fight in September, going on record saying that the entire team needed to be changed if his son was going to stand any chance of defeating the Bronze Bomber next time round.

So, yes, it appears that Fury has listened to the naysayers and decided that he needed to employ the services of an experienced trainer who will help him work on the ability to hurt and hopefully stop Wilder on February 22 in Las Vegas.

It’s an approach which makes sense in many ways. Customary bravado aside, Fury has already tasted Wilder’s power and will not be eager to repeat the risk inherent in trying elude the WBC world champion’s wrecking-ball of a right hand over 12 rounds. 

As we look forward to the second instalment, it’s worth pausing a moment to dwell on a year, 2019, that was extraordinary even by Tyson Fury’s standards. 

It saw him embark on numerous personal appearances and high profile interviews on both sides of the Atlantic as a prominent ambassador for mental health, release a bestselling autobiography, mount a foray into WWE wrestling and produce a Christmas duet with Robbie Williams. 

In between all that, he even managed to squeeze in a couple of tune-up fights, against Germany’s Tom Schwarz and Sweden’s aforementioned Otto Wallin in June and September. 

Given the desultory nature of the Wallin performance in particular — which as seen had Fury Snr up in arms — the worry that in 2019 Fury overextended himself, paying less attention to boxing and more to the many opportunities that appeared on the back of the fame and adulation he now enjoys, is hard to escape. 

Now, however, with the shake-up to his training team, and the decision to enter camp early in the States, we are invited to believe that the fire has returned to his belly in advance of Wilder II.

Adding, finally, to what is already a heady cocktail of intrigue going into the rematch, is the prospect of Anthony Joshua helping Fury to prepare for Wilder in sparring. Joshua made the offer to spar with him, Fury has accepted, and so we shall see if it transpires.

If it does, if AJ does join Fury’s training camp as one of his sparring partners, there are many who would pay good coin for the privilege of being ringside to watch. 

Among them would no doubt be Deontay Wilder.