A huge outsider going into his June 9 fight with the returning Tyson Fury, Albania’s Sefer Seferi insists he has the necessary combination of good chin and KO power to score the upset in Manchester. Despite having boxed most of his career down at cruiserweight and despite the fact that he will be giving away so much in both height and reach, the 39 year old is not only predicting a win – he is also saying he will fight Fury again after he defeats him.

Here, the man with the 23-1(21) pro record speaks with Boxing News:

Q: This is of course the biggest fight of your career. How do you respond to those people who say you are a “soft touch” for Tyson Fury?

Sefer Seferi (translated by Erol Ceylan): “People can say what they want to say. I have proved in the past, in my fight with Manuel Charr for example, that it is not so easy to knock me down or to knock me out. This fight, all the pressure is on Tyson Fury and you will see on June 9 what I can do.”

Q: You will be giving away so much in height and reach – can you back Fury up? How do you beat him?

S.S: “I will beat him with my lion heart! I’m Albanian and we are simply born to fight. Maybe I will not be able to push him back in the ring, but I know I have the power to knock him out. I know I can knock him out. As to how I will deal with Fury’s height and reach, all I can say is, you will see on June 9!”

Tyson Fury opponent

Q: When did you start full training for this fight and are you at all fazed by the fight being set for his home town of Manchester?

S.S: “I began training for the fight two weeks ago, but I am always in what I call training mode. I am always in good physical shape and in the gym. No way am I at all worried about coming there for the fight – I’m really looking forward to coming to Manchester. I look up to Fury, he is a living legend and it is a big honour for me to fight him. When I beat him I will give him a rematch.”

Q: Is your chin strong enough to take Fury’s power?

S.S: “Yes, no doubt. You will see June 9 my chin is strong enough. Yes, he is one of the best heavyweights in the world, but I have never been stopped and again, all the pressure is on him, not on me.”

Q: Who have you been sparring to get ready for the fight?

S.S: “With my good friends Arnold Gjergjaj [a former David Haye foe], Agron Dzila and Alexander Dimitrenko, and with my brother, Nuri Seferi. This will be a good fight and you will all find out on June 9 what I can do.”

Q: If Fury does beat you, can he go on to defeat Anthony Joshua and Deontay Wilder?

S.S: “If he can get himself back into the kind of top shape he was in when he defeated Wladimir Klitschko, then anything is possible. But it’s me [he is fighting] first!”