Tyson Fury is rightly wary but Dillian Whyte win would be a seismic shock

Tyson Fury and Dillian Whyte will enter the ring at Wembley Stadium just after 10pm on Saturday night with mutual respect for each other and the brutal uncertainties of heavyweight boxing. “We’re big men,” Whyte said a week ago at his training camp in Portugal, “and when one big heavyweight catches the other guy clean all plans and predictions go out the window. I know Tyson is the best heavyweight out there but I have been through so much to get this fight. I also know I can hurt him. I know I can beat him.”

A couple of days later, in the shadow of the huge arena where Fury will defend his WBC title against his British challenger, the world champion and undoubted favourite was just as blunt and respectful. “Dillian’s definitely a fearless guy. I’ve sparred him a lot in the past and he didn’t show any weaknesses. So I’m anticipating a good fight, a real tough fight, because Dillian is a strong heavyweight who is in the top five in the world. He poses a real challenge, as do all these heavyweights. It only takes one punch to knock a man out as we’ve seen many times. So I’m not underestimating him. I’ve trained like a Trojan warrior.”

Warming to his task, and stripping away all flowery talk, Fury added: “I break it down to the bare minimum and we have two big lumps in the ring, trying to knock each other out. It’s nothing new – just on a bigger stage. I will be leaving every ounce of strength and energy I have in the ring. That’s all you can do. You can train a horse for battle but the rest of it’s in God’s hands. If it’s written in the stars that I win again, we will have a drink after the fight to a very successful night and career. I’ll then get back in my car, drive straight to Morecambe Bay and take the bins out on