By Rufus Hutch: In a few hours time, one of the most eagerly anticipated and closely matched fights of the year will commence. As they step out of the corner, the hype and the talk will be left by the side of the ring. This fight will be decided as much by the psychology of the fighters and the tactics in the ring as by the boxing skills on display.

With two formidable trainers in the corners, you can expect to see two well drilled fighters with rehearsed game plans, the winner will likely be the one who can adapt to his opponent and follow through that plan the best. In this regard it is likely to be Klitschko who is forced to adapt the most, his game plan will be much more predictable than that of Haye, it has however worked countless times and the onus is on David Haye to do something different that he may not be comfortable with. Wladimir’s experience and discipline should enable him to deal with anything that Haye throws at him, but the pressure of the ring makes nothing easy.

Haye has done his best to get under Klitschko’s skin and it is becoming apparent that this has been successful. By attempting to get him to to focus on his opponent, rather than his own preparation Haye is looking to gain the upper hand. With a fighter as will drilled as Klitschko this is unlikely to have had the desired effect, but the hype Haye has brought to the fight may have had an unsettling effect. Both fighters are under tremendous pressure that neither has encountered for a while.

The biggest weapon at Haye’s disposal is his speed, power and self belief. If he believes as strongly in his abilities as his behaviour suggests then Klitschko could be in for an uncomfortable time. The desire to win may just keep him coming forward, past that jackhammer jab and get his opponent on the back foot.

This is going to be decided by the details, the fighter who is prepared to take the risks, the one who isn’t afraid to lose.
My prediction: A fantastic fight that gets the world talking about heavyweight boxing again.