By Ian Aldous: Photo credit: Team Sauerland – Mikkel Kessler (44-2) will attempt to become a World champion once again when he challenges Robert Stieglitz (40-2) for the WBO super-middleweight championship on 5th November. During a busy media day this past week, Mikkel took the time to answer the following questions.

On 5th November 2011 you will challenge Robert Stieglitz for his WBO super-middleweight World championship in the Parken Stadium, Copenhagen. Fans and experts seem united in their opinions that you will comfortably beat Robert. How confident are you going into the fight?

MK “I am very confident. I have been training hard. My trainer Jimmy Montoya has been with me in Denmark since the middle of August, so we had a long time to prepare. I will not underestimate Stieglitz; he deserves to be world champion. He is strong and technically a very good boxer. But when I am at the top of my game he will not be able to beat me.”

On 4th June 2011, you stopped Mehdi Bouadla in your huge comeback fight. How pleased were you with your performance after 14 months away from the ring?

MK “I was very pleased with my performance. Bouadla was a tough guy and he could really take a punch, but I managed to stop him. Of course after such a long break you need some time to find your rhythm and little things could still have been better, but overall, I was very happy.”

You’re 32 now and we’ve seen you boxing at a World-class level for a long time. Do you feel like you’re somewhere near your peak right now?

MK “I´m getting there. The coaching change really gave me a big boost. You know, Jimmy Montoya teaches me new things every day and he really brings out the best in me. Against Stieglitz, I will show some new things, so I believe that I can still get better…”

The super-middleweight division is one of the hottest in the sport at the moment. Where would you rank the winner of your fight with Stieglitz amongst guys like Lucian Bute, Andre Ward and Carl Froch?

MK “It´s a big fight for both of us and the winner certainly ranks among the top. There is a lot of talent in the super-middleweight division and I am sure there will be great fights in the future. I want to prove that I am the best super-middleweight out there. I proved that against Froch but then came the break. Now I will start again by proving myself against Stieglitz and we will see what happens next.”

Having competed against the two Super 6 tournament finalists, Andre Ward and Carl Froch, please give us your thoughts on the final.

MK “They are two very good fighters and it will be an exciting fight. I am ready to face the winner.”

Thanks to Johannes Berendt of Sauerland for making the interview possible.