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Calzaghe plans for future

30/10/2007

Super middleweight champion Joe Calzaghe has revealed that he is already looking beyond this Saturday's fight against Mikkel Kessler.

The Welshman believes that two more fights will complete his legacy after securing victory over the Danish WBA and WBC title-holder at the Millennium Stadium.

"I am 100 per cent sure I'll have, at the most, two more bouts after Saturday. It's like I've been running a marathon for these last 17 years without losing and now the end is in sight, I'm not about to give up. I've not come all this way to blow it at the finish," he told the Guardian.

"Kessler's a good all-round fighter but he is also predictable. I wouldn't say he is one-dimensional but he fights the same way every time.

"I don't think he is adaptable like me. He can't fight on the inside or going backwards and while he looked impressive in beating [Librado] Andrade he never dominated. So with my hand speed and adaptability I'm going to drag Kessler to a dark place where he's never been before."

Calzaghe is the longest reigning of all the current boxing world champions having captured his WBO crown in an elimination match against Chris Eubank in 1997 and made 20 successful defences since.

Kessler comes into the fight with a similarly unblemished record having recorded 39 victories without defeat during his professional career.

Around 50,000 partisan fans are expected to fill the Cardiff venue for the fight in the hope of seeing their hero secure his greatest win since defeating American Jeff Lacy in 2005.