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Hall of Fame referee Richard Steele has announced that he will return to the ring as an official after nearly three-and-a-half years of retirement.
Steele, one of the best and most respected referees of the modern era, stunned boxing back in January 2001 when he announced the Floyd Mayweather v Diego Corrales WBC super-featherweight title fight would be his last.
However, after trying promoting and matchmaking, the 60-year-old says he misses being close to the action and will be back shortly.
He told the Las Vegas Review-Journal: "I came to realize I was too young and that I'm a good referee and I can still do it well. I came to the realization that I want to be in boxing for the rest of my life, but at this point of my life I belong as a referee."
Steele handled 167 championship fights in 30 years as a ref, including the Alexis Arguello v Aaron Pryor, 1987's Sugar Ray Leonard-Marvelous Marvin Hagler and, of course, the 1990 Julio Cesar Chavez-Meldrick Taylor fight where Steele waved the fight off with less than three seconds remaining.
