Rotherham boxing expert Jamie Sheldon believes Tyson Fury still has the edge if a long-awaited clash with Anthony Joshua finally materialises - but he has warned fans they may have to wait up to a year to witness it.

Swinton-born Jamie Sheldon Sheldon, who works in Fury’s corner as a cut-man and has also been part of Kell Brook’s team, offered an insider’s perspective after Fury’s recent return to the ring against Russian Arslanbek Makhmudov following a 16-month absence.

“After the first round, he got rid of that ring rust. He looked in control,” Sheldon, a Manvers-based promoter and manager, said.

“Once he found his rhythm, you could see the difference. That’s what the top fighters do, they adapt, they settle, and it was only going one way.”

For Sheldon, the value of rounds was just as important as the result.

“Getting 12 rounds in was great, if he'd won inside the first two rounds then he'd have learnt nothing, but it went the full distance and it was a great performance for someone who spent 16 months out.”

While talk quickly turned to a blockbuster all-British showdown, Sheldon - drawing on his experience in big-fight environments, including Brook’s domestic clash with Amir Khan - stressed the realities behind the scenes.

“It’s not like you have a prospect going up against an old guy, both of them are coming to the end of their careers and it is THE fight to make,” he said. “I don’t see why they wouldn’t fight.

“If AJ wants to have another warmup fight and then fight Fury, will Tyson also have another warmup fight to stay active? Then we are talking maybe 10 to 12 months before we see that fight. But it all depends on negotiations.”

Sheldon, a former Swinton Fitzwilliam Junior and Swinton Comp school pupil, pointed to his time in Brook’s corner as a reminder that timing debates rarely dent public appetite.

“People said it was five or six years too late, but I was in Kell’s corner for the fight ( versus Khan) and when it got announced, it instantly sold out. This fight will still sell out any stadium no matter what, even if there are no titles on the line.”

From a technical standpoint, Sheldon feels Fury’s ring intelligence could prove decisive.

“Tyson’s IQ is on another level; he can adapt to any situation” he said. “For AJ, he is an absolutely unbelievable athlete that’s been turned into a boxer. That could have an effect and be the difference in the fight.

“You just don’t know how the fight is going to play out and we don’t know what AJ has left either," Jamie told https://betway.com/gb/en/sports/cat/boxing

“Has AJ still got that killer instinct that we fell in love with when he first started? That will be the dangerous part of the fight for Tyson because he has so much power.

“But Tyson has fought fighters who have huge power like Deontay Wilder and won. But like I said, Tyson has the boxing IQ and when you look at both fighters, you have to put Tyson as favourite.”