Boxing: David will be ready to face Goliath - Warren

Rotorua boxing coach Aaron Warren says former world heavyweight contender David Tua's long-awaited return to the ring could not come quickly enough.

Warren, the head coach at Rotovegas Boxing Gym is a long-time friend of Tua and said he was pleased to hear the 40-year-old was getting back into the ring again.

"I was speaking to him three weeks ago and he told me he was getting back into the ring and I told him 'good on you'. He said he's been training six days a week and he has never trained so hard."

Tua, who fought Lennox Lewis for the title in 2000, will take on world heavyweight championship contender Alexander Ustinov at Claudelands Arena, Hamilton on August 31.

The 36-year-old Russian, who stands at a towering 203cm, has won 28 of his 29 professional boxing bouts - earning him a top 10 ranking in both the WBA and IBF heavyweight divisions.

Warren told the Rotorua Daily Post yesterday he had every confidence Tua would be ready when he stepped into the ring.

"If he trims [down] and gets his hand speed up, he'll be lethal. He needs to be in the sort of shape he was for Shane Cameron. His speed will set him up for his power punch. Everyone knows about his devastating left hook."

Tua, who has 52 wins four loses and two draws, 43 wins by way of knockout, had been in a training camp for the past six months, David Higgins from Duco Events said. "David has been working out two times a day, six days a week. He's been getting fit from the inside out - the old school way. It's remarkable how hard he has worked."

Higgins said Tua's choice to fight Ustinov showed how serious the 155cm Kiwi fighter was.

"It would have been easy for him to select a bum and dress up the fight as a meaningful one by saying it's a chance to get rid of some ring rust after 24 months out of the ring.

"Instead, he has chosen a fighter who is huge and who has won 28 out of his 29 fights. Alexander Ustinov is a formidable opponent. But David understands where he wants to go and he knows that there is no hiding place when your goal is to fight for the heavyweight title again."

Higgins said a fight like this could set Tua up for a possible title shot against world heavyweight title holders Wladimir and Vitali Klitschko.

"The strategy behind this fight is purposeful, with one punch David Tua could send a message to the Klitschko brothers."

The bout will be Tua's first since his loss to Monte Barrett in August 2011.