Brits Fury, Whyte in heavyweight showdown

Tyson Fury is set for an epic homecoming as he returns to a UK ring for the first time since 2018 to defend his WBC heavyweight title against Dillian Whyte on April 23 at Wembley Stadium.

Whyte signed his contract earlier this week to pave the way for a showdown against Fury, whose co-promoter Frank Warren won the right to stage the fight after a record $US 41 million ($A57 million) offer at purse bids.

And Warren announced on Friday that the British rivals will face-off at the national stadium, which will be Fury's first fight in the UK since outpointing Francesco Pianeta in Belfast nearly four years ago.

Fury has fought exclusively in the United States since then after signing a lucrative promotional deal alongside Bob Arum's Top Rank and he became a world champion again by stopping Deontay Wilder in February 2020 in Las Vegas.

He returned to Sin City last October to retain his world title in an absorbing trilogy contest against the American, who was knocked out in the 11th round of a fight featuring five knockdowns - Wilder three and Fury two.

That has put him on a collision course with Whyte, who has not fought since last March when he avenged a surprise loss to Russian veteran Alexander Povetkin in Gibraltar to once more become the WBC's number one ranked contender.