Tuesday 28 February 2017 18:00, UK
Derry Mathews has revealed the details of a backstage altercation with upcoming opponent Ohara Davies at Monday’s press conference.
Mathews will fight Davies on the undercard to David Haye vs Tony Bellew, live on Sky Sports Box Office on Saturday, but the tension almost boiled over at the beginning of the week.
"He told me on social media 'come and see me after the press conference'," Mathews exclusively told Sky Sports. "I waited in the foyer. He had his minder with him.
I was on my own, he was on his own. He bottled it. For me, he's a coward.
"I said: 'you told me to come and find you, do you want to do it now?' I was on my own, he was on his own. He bottled it. For me, he's a coward.
"He said: 'Relax Derry, let's get paid for it'. I said: 'Let's do it now, man to man'.
"He stood behind his minder - even his minder what laughing at him. Ohara didn't know what to say, and he froze."
Earlier on Monday, Davies had been met by heckling from the crowd in Liverpool, the home city of Mathews.
"We're from a great fight city," Mathews said. "He stated that the boxing fans are terrible. But we've got the best fans in the world, even Eddie Hearn has said that.
"He kept repeating himself, it was very staged. I laughed at him, put him to one side. On Saturday, I guarantee three-quarters of the arena will be for me.
"He's a lot smaller than I expected, I looked like the bigger man. He'll be killing himself to make the weight.
"I've seen him for the first time and nothing fazed me. He's got some mouth on him! On Saturday, he'll get shut up. He'll get absolutely annihilated."
