Eight years ago, Audley Harrison returned from the Sydney Olympic Games as the face of British boxing and with the world at his feet. But the path to the top of the professional sport has been longer and more meandering than he had imagined. Perhaps only Harrison and those closest to him believe that he will make it to the summit.

Older, wiser and, in his words, a better man, Harrison has said that 2009 will be his year. To judge from past mishaps, we have to rely on his word for the likelihood that he could still become world heavyweight champion. That and the words of Thell Torrance, his American trainer, who believes that the distractions have gone from Harrison’s life. “This is the first time I’ve had his head,” Torrance said.

The latest step on Harrison’s journey takes place tonight, when he faces George Arias, from Brazil, at the MEN Arena in Manchester. The bout is third on the bill, behind Alex Arthur’s WBO super-featherweight title defence against Nicky Cook and Amir Khan’s contest against Breidis Prescott. As the shine has faded from Harrison’s Olympic super-heavy-weight gold medal, he has found that boxing down the bill is something he must do to get back to the top.

“I had a Midas touch and I lost that,” Harrison, 36, said. “I had to work to get it back and in that process I found the real Audley. Danny Williams 1 [Harrison’s first defeat in 2005], I was close to winning, as badly as I performed. Maybe it’s a blessing that I didn’t go through that door because I had a big HBO contract and I wasn’t ready to be the next Lennox Lewis. Then it was all about me. I’m not that kind of person any more, not that celebrity. I’m boxing now because I want to box, not because I have to.

“In 2009, I’m going to be heavyweight champion of the world. People will say, ‘Yeah, yeah, Audley, we’ve heard it before.’ I’m saying this is the best I’m going to be. It’s not been the ideal path, but the man who stands here today is far better prepared and a far better person, too.”

For those who decry Harrison as a failure, it is worth noting how far boxing has taken him. In January, his younger brother, Vincent, died in a bedsit in Watford, Hertfordshire, from a heart attack brought on by taking cocaine and heroin. “I knew my brother meddled in drugs, but lots of people meddle with drugs,” Harrison said. “The initial thing we were told was a brain haemorrhage. But he’s gone to a better place. It makes it even more important that I achieve my goals because he was one of my biggest fans.”

Harrison previously boxed in Britain 19 months ago, when Michael Sprott knocked him out. He was then injured in a car crash in Florida, suffering a torn pectoral muscle and a broken hand. He edged his way back with a stoppage win over Jason Barnett in Las Vegas in April.

One thing that Harrison has lost is his claim to be Britain’s most recent Olympic gold medal-winner, after James DeGale’s success in Beijing last month. Harrison was impressed and feels that DeGale can go far as a professional. “If they get someone to get the best out of him, like a Brendan Ingle, he could be phenomenal,” Harrison said. “He’s loose-limbed, he can box both sides, he’s got very good reflexes, so you have a lot to work with.”

The Olympics were also a triumph for Terry Edwards, the Great Britain head coach, whom Harrison had refused to work with in Sydney. “Terry Edwards is a very strong character, it’s his way or the highway, and that’s why we didn’t get on,” Harrison said. “But you’ve got to give Terry credit for helping those guys deliver.

“In Sydney he must have felt like s*** on the plane home when I’m boxing. Then my book slated him. Eight years later he has been vindicated in his methods. He showed perseverance and I’m showing perseverance, and I’ll win the gold medal that is the world heavyweight championship.”

Matthew Hatton, the younger brother of Ricky, enhanced his credentials for a shot at the British welterweight title in the new year, after returning to winning ways under Lee Beard, his new trainer, with an eight-round points victory over Scott Woolford in Nottingham last night. Hatton, 27, who split with Billy Graham after losing to Craig Watson for the Commonwealth title in May, looked sharp and picked his shots well as he recorded a 77-74 win, putting the game Woolford on the floor in the seventh round.

Rendall Munroe retained his European super-bantamweight title with a unanimous points victory, but he had to overcome a tough challenge in Nottingham last night from Arsen Martirosian, a France-based Armenian.

Matthew Hatton, younger brother of Ricky, returned to winning ways under Lee Beard, his new trainer, with a points victory over Scott Woolford. Hatton split with Billy Graham after losing to Craig Watson for the Commonwealth welterweight title in May.

Explore More Sport

• Athletics

• Boxing

• Cycling

• Sailing

• US Sport