Tyson Fury: Why he gave up his heavyweight titles - and what happens next

The 28-year-old has not fought since ending Wladimir Kitschko’s decade-long dominance of the heavyweight division, twice dropping out of rematches before voluntarily vacating his belts.

Of course, it wasn't exactly 'voluntary': the WBA and WBO had already threatened that they would strip him of his belts and the IBO would likely have followed suit, so all Fury did was pre-empt the boxing authorities’ rulings.

"I feel that it is only fair and right and for the good of boxing to keep the titles active and allow the other contenders to fight for the vacant belts that I proudly won and held as the undefeated heavyweight champion of the world when I defeated the long-standing champion Wladimir Klitschko," Fury said in a statement that, for once, saw him get his PR right by framing the loss of his belts as a magnanimous gesture.

The British Boxing Control met this week to discuss removing Fury’s licence to box and on Thursday confirmed that they have made that decision to remove that licence. But why?

Well, as usual when it comes to Fury, it's not a simple explanation.

Twice Fury has dropped out of a second bout with Klitschko, failing to uphold his responsibility to defend the WBO and WBA titles he claimed just under a year ago.

On the first occasion the Manchester-born boxer cited an ankle injury for the withdrawal.

But earlier this month Fury admitted to using “lots of cocaine” to help deal with depression shortly after an incident that saw him feign retirement from the sport and raise concerns that his mental health may be deteriorating.

The heavyweight and his camp subsequently revealed he has been dealing with depression for many years and will undergo treatment for the illness.

Fury’s conduct after claiming his heavyweight titles – both the homophobic, sexist and racist comments he made and the lack of physical condition he was able to maintain – drew strong criticism from across the sporting world.

And his online meltdown earlier this month and initial allegations of drug use were also met with widespread condemnation.

However, the news that Fury has been struggling to cope with the stresses of a mental health condition has correctly led to a more sympathetic reaction to the news that he has vacated the belts.

Fury’s world heavyweight titles are now up for grabs, but confusion reigns over exactly who will fight for them.

Brace yourself, this has the potential to get quite confusing...

Anthony Joshua was due to defend his IBF belt against Joseph Parker in November, but the collapse of the Fury-Klitschko rematch has seen the British fighter’s camp push hard for a bout against the Ukrainian legend.

Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearne believes that fight will also be for the currently vacant WBO belt.

However, Parker’s promoter has dismissed the idea that the WBO title will also be up for grabs in a possible Joshua-Klitschko headline clash.

Parker is the WBO’s top ranked fighter and could face a bout against the third-ranked Andy Ruiz Junior, with the New Zealander’s representatives confident that the divisional belt will be on the table.

"We have agreed we can do the fight in New Zealand, we have agreed on a date and we're pretty close on getting the money down," Dean Lonergan said. "It's just a case of waiting for Eddie to make that deal with Joshua versus Klitschko.

"I think they will make that deal, but it just won't be for the WBO heavyweight title. You guys need to read the rules to find out what can and cannot happen.

A host of other possible fights could be agreed as a result of Fury vacating the belts, but a Joshua vs. Klitschko and Parker vs. Ruiz double-header looks the likeliest outcome at present, setting up a possible follow-up unification fight between the winners of those bouts.

The future of Tyson Fury in boxing must surely now be in doubt – and not just because of his mental health illness.

The 28-year-old’s physical fitness is not ideal for an athlete of his age, with a career extending deep into his thirties (a-la Klitschko) highly unlikely unless he undergoes a radical change in lifestyle.

But even if Fury’s mental and physical fitness recovers sufficiently, he could well face a ban over his reported recreational drug use, while there has also been an anti-doping charge from the UK authorities that could hinder any chance of a comeback (Fury denies any wrongdoing over the alleged traces of nandrolone in his sample from early 2015).

However, fellow heavyweight Joshua believes we haven’t seen the last of Fury in the ring, despite the obstacles in the way of a return.

''I am sure we will see Tyson Fury back in the ring again,” Joshua told the Press Association last week.

''Tyson is a fighting man, a real talent and he is good for boxing in his own way. I really hope to see him getting back to what he does best."