After a near two-and-a-half year layoff, Tony Harrison is set to make his return this weekend.

The former WBC junior middleweight world champion will fight in his Detroit, Michigan hometown when welcoming Dominican Republic hopeful Edward Ulloa Diaz (15-6, 12 KOs) in a 10-round middleweight bout on the undercard of Claressa Shields' undisputed heavyweight title defence against Lani Daniels at the Little Caesars Arena on July 26.

The bout marks Harrison's first at the fully-fledged middleweight limit of 160-pounds and his first contest on home soil since 2014.

"It's like a wedding day for me," Harrison told The Ring. "I'm super stoked, I was always looking forward to getting back in the ring, had a calling of doing so, but no bigger calling than doing it in the city I was birthed in. The city I love so much and that I think is a mecca of boxing in the world."

Harrison (29-4-1, 21 KOs) last fought on March 12, 2023, suffering a 9th-round stoppage defeat by former WBO junior middleweight titlist Tim Tszyu on enemy territory in Australia.

The Detroit native emerged as a late replacement for then-injured former undisputed champion Jermell Charlo (35-2-1, 19 KOs), who he outpointed to win the WBC title during their first fight five years earlier. In the rematch, nearly one year to the day of their first December meeting, Charlo scored an 11th-round stoppage to avenge defeat.

After losing to Tszyu, Harrison felt the need to take a break from boxing, citing the toll of fighting at 154-pounds as well as the fact he still mourned the loss of his father and trainer Ali Salaam, who died from coronavirus on April 20, 2020 at just 59 years old.

As Harrison took a break from the fight game, the motivation to come back to the squared circle gradually returned. While he may not be the same fighter he was physically, Harrison believes he's improved mentally and that will pay dividends aged 34.

"I never stopped being 154 since I was 13 years old, so it just took a toll on me," Harrison continued. "I took a step back, my father had passed, it was rejuvenating to find that hunger that I once had early in my career. Just to get that hunger back, seeing all these guys fighting, I'm like man, these guys can't f--- with me.

"Athletically, I'm not the same but now I'm playing a mental game. I'm going from being Roy Jones Jr to Bernard Hopkins. It's playing a mental, disciplined, eating right game, playing a game that I didn't when I was 25 - I am now - I feel amazing."

Now, Harrison is aligned with Dmitry Salita and Salita Promotions as he prepares to step back through the ropes for the first time in 837 days. Hopeful he can stay active, he knows that starts with handling business impressively against Diaz, in-front of what he expects to be a raucous crowd in the same town where he first cut his teeth as a boxer.

"I expect fireworks, a loud and vicious crowd. I expect the Little Caesars Arena to be the Detroit Lions vs. the Green Bay Packers [an NFL rivalry], that kind of noise and crowd. I expect my opponent to be intimidated by the fans, I'll give them a show and then Claressa will too - on that night, Detroit wins."