By Nick Halling

Less than a month away from heading across the Atlantic for the biggest fight of his life, Liverpool light heavyweight Tony Bellew remains confident that he can upset the odds and rip the WBC belt away from its current owner, Canadian power puncher Adonis Stevenson.

Bellew believes that Stevenson may have one eye on a proposed unification fight with WBO boss Sergei Kovalev, who is also defending his title on the bill in Quebec City on 30 November. As a result, he might be looking past the former British champion, and perhaps even under-estimating him. Bellew will be quite happy if that proves to be the case.

“I don’t think he’s going to show me the respect I deserve,” said Bellew. He’s a hype machine, and I think he’s bought into his own hype. He really believes he’s untouchable, that he really is Superman. But he’s going to be brought back down to earth. I know my own limitations, but beating this guy is well within my capabilities.”

Stevenson has enjoyed whirlwind success since demolishing Chad Dawson in June, following up with a one-sided seven round beatdown of Tavoris Cloud in September. From being a  super-middleweight contender hoping for a shot at Carl Froch, two wins have catapulted him up the pound-for-pound list.

“People are looking at him like he’s the next Mike Tyson, but thats a long way from the truth,” said Bellew. “He’s a vicious, spiteful counter puncher, more like Pernell Whitaker, but with a really nasty punch. In that regard, he’s world class with genuine lights-out power. If he hits anyone clean, they’re going, it’s as simple as that.

“I might be overestimating him, but I’d rather do that than the other way round. On the flip side, do you seriously think that for one second he’s worried about Tony Bellew? Can you see him studying tapes of me? I can see Sugar Hill (Stevenson’s trainer) doing it, but not Stevenson. I don’t think he respects me.”

But Bellew also understands that he cannot expect any favours from the judges. The connections of Stevenson and Kovalev are already making lucrative plans, with American broadcaster HBO also licking their lips at the proposed superfight. A Bellew victory would scupper a lot of well-laid aspirations as well as hitting all parties in the pocket.

“I’m not getting a points decision, and I’m under no illusions about that,” he said. “I’m really just going to have to go for it. I’ve watched him, and when you push him back, he doesn’t know what to do. When guys fight back, he’s lost.

“He’s going to go in there, let his hands go, with no regard for defence, but I’m going to anticipate everything he’s going to do. I’m expecting to be hit harder than I’ve ever been hit before, but its going to be the same for him – and he wont be expecting that. All the pressure is going to be on him, and I think he’s going to be in for a shock.”

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Ryan Rhodes is the latest former British boxing champion to try his luck as a trainer – although for the one-time Spice Boy, it is very much an accidental career development.

“When I retired last year, the one thing I said I definitely didn’t want to do was become a trainer,” said the Sheffield stylist. “It’s a thankless job, you’re at it 24 hours a day, dealing with all the politics of boxing. And unless you’re working with fighters who are winning titles, the financial rewards aren’t great either. So it definitely wasn’t for me.”

How ironic, therefore, that without making a single phone call, Rhodes finds himself with a stable of three boxers, his reputation effectively going before him. “I was training some friends, just fitness coaching really, and Curtis Woodhouse (the Yorkshire-based light welterweight) heard about it, and asked if he could join in some of my sessions.

“After three or four sessions, he asked me if I’d like to take him on fulltime. Curtis was travelling down to Birmingham (where he trained with Jon Pegg) and he was finding it really hard with all the driving and being away from his family. So I said I’d take him on, and at that time I hadn’t even applied for my trainer or corner licence.”

Rhodes spent five weeks working with Woodhouse in preparation for his comeback fight last weekend against Lewis van Poetsch, which Woodhouse won on points. In his previous fight, he had been knocked out by Derry Mathews for the Commonwealth lightweight title, and Rhodes has already  begun to modify his fighter’s game.

Woodhouse says he’s no longer so gung-ho, but will be working more on the defensive side of his game rather than just looking for the knockout all the time.

It certainly worked against van Poetsch, a contest Rhodes had to watch from a distance as his paperwork hadn’t come through. But while he was busy preparing Woodhouse, word was getting around that Rhodes was doing some training out of Dave Coldwell’s gym in Rotherham, and the phone began to ring.

“I got a call from Ross Burkinshaw (former British super flyweight title challenger), and I’ve known him since he was a kid. He asked to come down too. We had a few sessions, we both loved it, so I took Ross on too. Then last week Dave Fidler (an ubeaten light middle) approached me, so now I have three fighters I’m training. It’s just completely snowballed.

“But it working out because I’m very close to the guys I’m working with. It’s like working with some friends. But this is not something I ever went looking for. As my wife said to me: things happen for a reason.”

Former British and European light middleweight boss Rhodes continues to be busy, working for Pow UK, a promotional company run by his former sponsor Matt Balne, but now training is starting to give him a new set of skills. And having worked under first the legendary Brendan Ingle, and the end of his career Coldwell, he certainly has had two excellent role models.

“I was with Brendan for 22 years, from the first time I walked into the gym as a six year old,” he said. “That was an amazing experience. Then I finished with Dave Coldwell, who’s younger and incredibly knowledgeable. So I had the best of both worlds, old school and the younger generation, and had great times with both.”

The only thing holding Rhodes back now is the paperwork, and the wait for his licences. He’s hoping they will be through in time for December 13th, when he plans on being in the corner for Fidler’s next outing. “That will be the first time working the corner on my own,” he admitted, “and the nerves will definitely be jangling. I cant wait!”

Nick Halling is a commentator for Sky Sports.