There has been a lot of back and forth between Sherman "The Tank" Williams and up and coming heavyweight Joseph Parker ahead of their fight tomorrow night at The Trusts Arena in Auckland, England.
The two were originally supposed to fight back in April, but due to some issues between Williams and world titleholder Vladimir Klitschko, who was the event's headliner, the fight never took place and Marcelo Luiz Nascimento of Brazil replaced Williams.
In the fight, Parker scored a seventh round knockout (KO) over Nascimento, and went on to win his next two fights by KO and technical knockout (TKO).
Coming off those wins, Parker said he feels extremely confident in his ability to pull out the victory on Thursday night.
"When I compare my body, I'm in a lot better shape now. When I compare my skill, I know I'm a lot better. I know I've learned a lot," Parker said.
"The groundwork I have done already certainly helps me with this fight. This fight is my toughest fight for where I am at the moment.
"He's a fighter with a lot of experience and he has fought a lot of the top fighters around the world, the likes of [Evander] Holyfield. He's got a good chin, he's proved that."
Coming into the fight, Williams has been compared to several of Parker's previous opponents, but quickly dismissed the comparisons, and was very vocal about one of them.
"I'm no Brian Minto, I am no White Buffalo," said Williams, referring to the aging American fighter who Parker defeated in seven rounds in July.
"I'm here to win, to take those belts. I've had a great camp. I've got a great game plan and I'm feeling healthy, ready to go."
Williams has managed to build a 36-win, 13-loss, two-draw career since he turned pro in 1997. He has developed a reputation for being tough, and having a strong right hand, but Williams knows his inactivity over the past year makes him an underdog going into the fight.
"I've been the underdog before," he said. "If you look at my past, I perform best when I'm the underdog.
"The ratings mean nothing to me. Joseph is a good fighter. He's a good athlete but he never fought nobody like Sherman 'Tank' Williams."
Williams said he knows since he is overseas, he will have to turn in a decisive performance to come out with the victory.
"Look at boxing, it is what it is. We're not in The Bahamas; it speaks for itself," he said.
"Here in New Zealand it's one of those situations. I'm not going to fool myself. Joseph is a Kiwi and the Kiwis love Joseph. On Thursday, I'm going to have to give him a proper beating."
Both Parker's WBO Oriental and WBA Asia Pacific belts will be on the line tomorrow.

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