”This has been one of the toughest camps of my career,” said Abraham. ”My coach Ulli Wegner and his assistant Georg Bramowski have pushed me to my limits. It’s been brutal at times, but it will all be worthwhile when my hand is raised on Saturdaynight. Martin is a good boxer and I expect him to give me a hard fight, but there is no way he is taking my title!”

Murray, who is contesting his first title at 168 lbs following three valiant attempts at middleweight, shares the Champion’s confidence and has vowed not to leave Germany without Abraham’s WBO belt.

Photo by Sebastian Hegar

”We’ve been studying Arthur carefully and I believe I’ve got him beat,” said the 33 year-old from St Helens. ”He is a great fighter, but he’s not changed his style in years, and in my opinion, he’s not evolved. It’s going to be a tough fight but I know it’s well within me to win. I won’t be leaving Germany without the title!”

”This is a real 50-50 fight,” said promoter Kalle Sauerland. ”And I think it will be Arthur’s toughest test for many years. However, he has never shied away from a challenge, and against Murray, I expect Arthur to prove why he is the number one fighter in the super middleweight division.”

Another man under no illusion of the danger Murray poses is Abraham’s long-time coach and mentor Ulli Wegner, who will be celebrating his 100th World title fight on Saturday night. ”For Arthur and I, a unification bout is the common goal,” said the 73 year-old. ”But first he must get past Murray, which will be no easy task!”

Photo by Sebastian Hegar

Photo by Lawrence Lustig

A brave performance against Gennady Golovkin followed in 2015, but was not enough to capture the Kazakh’s middleweight titles. Now, the former British and Commonwealth Champion believes the ‘time is right’ as he intends to draw on past experience to dethrone the German Champion.

”Abraham is a great champion and I’m expecting a tough fight but I just feel that the timing is right for me now,” reveals Murray. ”I think my first World title fight against Sturm may have come a little bit too early. I jumped straight from domestic to world level, so even though there was an argument to say I won that fight, I think it came to soon for me.

”Against Martinez, I knew I could win but going into the fight there were still some doubts. Whereas this time, I know I have it within me to win. I’ve got the ring experience, I’ve got the know-how, and I really feel, despite being in Germany, I’m going to get a fair crack of the whip.”

Murray, who has recorded three wins inside the distance since moving up to super middleweight, says he is expecting the ‘best Arthur Abraham’ having been impressed with the Champion’s recent performances.

”Arthur has looked great in his last two performances,” said the 33 year-old. ”I think I’ll be facing the best Arthur Abraham on Saturday night. He may of overlooked Paul Smith a little bit in their first fight, but I don’t think he is going to overlook me. He knows this is a massive fight for him and a risky fight, so I’m sure he’s going to turn up in top condition.”