'Smith is going to hit a brick wall. That brick wall's name is Tony Dodson.'

As he left the arena, you would be forgiven for thinking that Tony Dodson didn't have a care in the world. His demeanour was that of a man who was ready to go for a bite to eat with his friends, rather than being 24 hours away from facing Paul Smith for the British super-middleweight crown, the biggest fight of his distinguished career. Having weighed in at 11st 13lb 6oz, Tony admitted to being fresh after having some food and drink, and was happy to tell BoxRec News that he was in fantastic shape for his upcoming battle.

“Everything's gone great. It's the same old thing, before every fight people say how its been perfect and how this was great, that was great, then it comes out that they had this wrong, that wrong, but I can genuinely say that things have gone great, I am in tip-top condition for this as you can see on the scales."

An increase in sparring has apparently helped this time around, very important considering that he has been out since last March, when he lost a titanic battle against Tony Quigley in their vacant British title showdown.

“It has been perfect, I have had more rounds of sparring here than in any other fight I have had, my conditioning has been great, even better than before the Quigley fight.”

Any fan of British boxing is well aware that the bad blood in this fight could make it one of the most brutal fights we have seen in years. But then again, any experienced observer will know that many fights have had bad blood before, but afterwards, the respect is there. This however, does not appear to be on of those occasions, with genuine bad blood from both sides.

“It's all bubbles mate, all the shit that comes out of his mouth and all the nonsense, but I mean everything I say, and I am going to come through with it on Friday night.”

Whereas Tony Quigley was happy to engage in the unseemly ruck at the weigh in before his fight with 'Smigga' (though not over-committing in the ring come fight night)Dodson appears to be treating the champion's supposed actions with a little more contempt. Whether he will be able to keep his temper in the ring come the opening bell remains another story, and could be a defining point in the fight. Either way, one does not expect these two to be having a drink after the fight.

Ever since Paul Smith moved up to super-middle many have questioned whether he is really at his correct weight. That appeared to have been answered when he ripped the title away from Quigley, but after meeting each other at the weigh in, Dodson feels that this will be the deciding factor in the fight, and the factor that will once again make him the British King.

“I'll tell you what I saw mate - he isn't big enough, he needs to get down to middle and get his act together. He knows there are too many talents down there who will dispose of him easy so he thinks that coming up to super-middle is the easier route, and to be fair he has won the British title, it's gone well for him but Friday night he is going to hit a brick wall and that brick wall's name is Tony Dodson.”

Finally I asked if Tony had any predictions for the fight, any final words for Smith or our readers. He responded in his ever confident manner.

“Just a Dodson win, as always, that's what matters to me.”

He walked off, looking stylish in his tracksuit and sunglasses, acknowledging anyone who greeted him as he made his way out of the Echo Arena. As fight night approaches it's obvious. If Paul Smith is to retain his belt, he will probably have to go through his own baptism of fire. Dodson seems to to think he is about to achieve his destiny, after all the bad luck and setbacks. And really, few would begrudge him the gold. We are in for one hell of a night.