Boxing: Elland Road eliminator being lined up by Middleton man Thomas Young

Leeds boxer Thomas Young. Picture: Tony Johnson.

Leeds boxer Thomas Young will make his long-awaited return to the ring in December when he faces fellow Yorkshireman Dan West at Elland Road.

Young last fought in April when he took part in 5Spike’s Ultimate Boxxer, which pitted eight unbeaten prospects in an eliminator format.

He reached the final only to lose to Drew Brown.

And the Middleton man has taken great encouragement from his performances at the MEN Arena.

“I loved it, it was a great experience,” Young said.

“The venue was much bigger than I was used to and the publicity and media coverage was bigger too.”

Young – who is managed by Mick Marsden and sponsored by Steve Parkin of Clipper Logistics – beat previously unbeaten fighters, Ben Eland and Isaac Macleod, en route to the final.

December’s fight will see Young, 25, fight an eight-round bout for the first time.

However, he predicts it could be easier than the Ultimate Boxxer format, in which he fought three fights in one evening.

He added: “I fought seven rounds, but there were breaks between fights, so fatigue won’t be able to set in in the same way it did when there were breaks between fights.”

Training is going well for the Central Area Title eliminator on December 2 and Young, who has been upping his workload in sparring, admits the last four weeks have been intense.

And like many Leeds-based boxers, Young holds up Josh Warrington as a shining example.

“He is a massive inspiration,” he said of the IBF Featherweight champion of the world. “He has really put Leeds on the map with his victory over Lee Selby.”