Audley has to be Sprott on

14 April 2012

Audley Harrison is categorical. Not that he will win the world heavyweight championship, sincerely though he believes that will happen before the end of this year.

Not that more than 10,000 fight fans will be cheering him to the rafters of the Wembley Arena on Saturday night, convinced though he is that he is about to win over another swathe of doubters.

Not even that we will all learn to love him in the end, certain though he feels that recognition of the genuine Audley will banish the misunderstood Fraudley from the consciousness of the nation sooner rather than later.

What Harrison is categorical about this weekend is that he has never been knocked down by a sparring partner. Not by anyone in any gymnasium either side of the Atlantic. Certainly not by Michael Sprott.

Recent speculation that he had been dumped from his great height when working out with Sprott some five years ago was put to Harrison yesterday.

"Categorically no," he replied. "The only time I have ever been off my feet in the ring was when you all saw me knocked down by Danny Williams in our first fight. No sparring partner has ever done that to me. Categorically not."

Since it is Sprott with whom he is about to trade punches for real, that goes a long way towards explaining why Harrison is a categorical 1-7 on favourite to take another positive stride on his comeback trail from the dustbin of defeat by Williams towards one of the richest crowns in sport.

Those "intense" sparring sessions at the time of Harrison's conversion from Olympic gold medallist to professional contender are to Sprott's disadvantage now.

What the bookmakers have calculated is that Harrison will know that Sprott cannot really hurt him. From that he can be expected to draw the confidence - bordering on arrogance - which he needs to banish his innate wariness of being hit hard by more concussive punchers than himself.

The question of whether Harrison is possessed of the natural fighter's instinct has dogged him throughout his career but is unlikely to handicap him on this occasion.

Not only did he come through that rehearsal still standing but as Sprott was unwise enough to admit at yesterday's official eye-balling: "Audley's come on a bundle since then."

Thus Sprott, despite a somewhat paranoid reluctance to discuss the anatomy of the impending contest, contrived to shoot himself through the foot.

Bolstering Harrison's ego is not the wisest ploy of any opponent. When the man who modestly describes himself as the A-Force entered the ring for his re-match with Williams, he was encouraged to exact revenge by the knowledge that Big Danny had been called in so late to deputise for Matt Skelton that he was about as sharp as a rusty kettle.

So even when he was reminded that several thousand of Sprott's supporters will be coming down the M4 from his home town of Reading, Harrison said: "Good. The rivalry with my fans will make a better atmosphere."

What promoter Frank Warren is hoping is that Audley does not retreat into his shell the way he did first time out against Williams and puts a similar damper on the proceedings.

If Warren is to steer Harrison on through a rougher battle with Skelton, the ex-martial arts giant, in April, and then on to a summer challenge for one of the four world titles, his fights have to catch the eye of American television as well as the judges at ringside.

Footage of ITV's live coverage will be scrutinised in the US and Warren says: "These guys have to deliver. Not just victory for one of them but excitement."

Whether that will include the thrill of a knock-out is by no means certain. Harrison fancies he can produce a stoppage the like of which he inflicted in his second fight with Williams but he is not the heaviest puncher on the planet.

Sprott is not too old for a heavyweight - 31 to Harrison's 35 - but he is no banger. Only 14 of his 29 victories against mostly moderate opposition have come by way of KO and his form-line is weighted by 10 defeats.

Ironically the most devasting of those losses, against South Africa's worldly-wise Corrie Sanders, is one sliver of history which may play to his advantage now. As he knows from those distant workouts with Harrison: "Sanders hits one helluva sight harder than Audley."

The two belts they are disputing - the geographical irrelevance of the European Union title and the English heavyweight championship which stands vacant largely through disinterest - are of lesser consequence than the interim WBO world lightweight title for which Luton's Graham Earl is opposing Australia's Michael Katsidis.

Earl pursues his long-awaited chance of a little glory fully aware that Amir Khan is coming up fast behind him.

Khan, Britain's brilliant Olympic silver medallist at lightweight, continues his campaign towards a title shot in 2007 by testing himself against French super-featherweight champion Mohammed Medjadji.

Harrison - since he is at the other end of his career - is the one who must win. Were he to lose to a heavyweight with such a mixed record and so moderate a punch as Sprott the world title dream would be over. Categorically.

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