By Sean McDaniel: 40-year-old former WBO heavyweight champion Shannon Briggs (51-6-1, 45 KO’s) will be returning to the ring in March to continue his boxing career after a year and half absence from the ring following a one-sided 12 round unanimous decision loss to WBC heavyweight champion Vitali Klitschko in October 2010.

According to an interview at fightnews.com, Briggs is saying that he only received $25,000 for that fight and he thought he was supposed to receive $750,000. The defeat was a costly one, as Briggs tore the tendon and bicep in his left arm and had to be hospitalized afterwards to have these injuries repaired.

As for what Briggs hope to accomplish with this comeback it’s unknown. He says he wants to regain a heavyweight world title and thinks that would be a big thing. At his age, with his injuries and extensive time off from the sport, it’s difficult to see Briggs having much of an impact in the heavyweight division. Vitali Klitschko is likely to retire in a year or so, but there are a number of quality heavyweights that will immediately move in to fill the void left by the huge 6’7” Ukrainian. I’m not sure that Briggs can be that person unless he starts fighting a lot and knocking off some of the top contenders to get a title shot. In the past, Briggs has knocked off B level fighters one after another to get his title shots. I don’t know if he can accomplish again.

Briggs fought WBC heavyweight champion Lennox Lewis for a world title in March 1998 after facing largely B level fighters leading up to the fight. Lewis stopped Briggs in the 5th round in that fight. Briggs then went back to fighting B level competition and eight years later, he stopped WBO heavyweight champion Sergiy Liakhovich in the 12th round to capture a world title in November 2006. Briggs lost the title in his first defense against Sultan Ibragimov seven months later in June 2007.

In 2009, Briggs went back to fighting B level heavyweights and after five wins over mediocre opposition, Briggs fought Vitali Klitschko for his WBC heavyweight title in October 2010 and took a beating in losing by a lopsided 12 round decision. Now you have to wonder if Briggs will repeat this process by facing 5 to 10 B level fighters to get a fourth shot at world title.