By Yuri Tarantin

WBC cruiserweight 'champion in recess,' Grigory Drozd (40-1, 28KOs) is now in full training for his ring return.

Drozd never lost the belt in the ring. The belt became vacant when he suffered multiple injuries and was unable to meet his mandatory obligation to Ilunga Makabu. The WBC made him the 'champion in recess' - a status which grants him an immediate world title shot at whoever is the current beltholder.

The cruiserweight belt changed hands on May 29th in Liverpool, when Tony Bellew (27-2-1, 17KOs) knocked out  Makabu in three rounds to capture the vacant WBC world title.

Bellew is scheduled to make the first defense of the belt on October 15th when he faces BJ Flores at the Echo Arena in Liverpool. Drozd will be a very interested observer.

Because of his 'champion in recess' status, Drozd can call for an immediate shot at the Bellew-Flores winner, and the victor will be forced to fight him or face the possibility of getting stripped.

Drozd captured the belt in September of 2014 with a dominating performance over longtime champion Krzysztof Wlodarczyk. He made his first defense last May with a ninth round stoppage of Lukasz Janik.

Drozd says his shoulder is doing very well in camp. He is still not sure as to the exact date of his next fight.

"This week, I started full training, I feel great," said Drozd. " The shoulder is not a concern, so I will gradually increase the load in camp. If everything goes as we plan, in the near future I will be able to determine the approximate date of my return to the ring."

If Drozd does not exercise his right to an immediate shot in the aftermath of Bellew-Flores, then WBC mandatory challenger Mairis Briedis would be next in line, and Drozd will have to wait until that entire scenario shakes out. 

Yuri Tarantin covers boxing for Allboxing.ru.