The 31-year-old puncher, who has impressed since moving up to 200lbs, is currently finishing off training with respected boxing figure Dave Coldwell and says he is ready to go as fight week approaches.
“Everything is going great,” Bellew exclusively told World Boxing News on Wednesday.
“Dave is a top coach who has got me in fantastic shape. He’s a taskmaster In the gym. When we get in there, he is firmly the boss inside those four walls.”
Asked whether he has seen anything from Cleverly’s move up to the 200lb limit that would suggest he will approach the fight differently, Bellew stated: “Nothing at all. He’s not a puncher!
“If he trades with me, it’ll be over quickly. I don’t claim I’m the second coming of Mike Tyson. I know if I land clean, I can hurt fighters.”
The return with Cleverly is set to be shown on Sky Sports Box Office with a one-off charge of £16.95, something which received a cold shoulder from some fans who have even set up protest groups to boycott the fight.
A card containing George Groves, James DeGale, Jamie McDonnell, Anthony Joshua, and many more is not to be sniffed at, though, according to Bellew – who says the Echo Arena event is well worth a watch to any fan.
“It’s a fight everyone wants to see. That’s why they’re complaining,” said Bellew. “If it were Sid Razak v Peter Buckley, people wouldn’t moan. They wouldn’t pay. But this fight is a fight people want to see, and it’s that simple.
“Should it be PPV? On its own, that’s not fair, but as a card, yes, it is PPV!
“There have been lesser cards on PPV before. The bill is stacked with world-class fighters and a few world champions. Plus, it also has some high-level prospects in good fights on there too.”
Going into next week’s build-up, a supercharged atmosphere is expected to fill the room each time the fighters are in each other’s vicinity. However, Bellew was decidedly calm when predicting how the formalities will play out.
“I’ll remain calm throughout fight week and in the ring. I’m a seasoned professional who has learned the hard way. I will not let emotions play a part in this fight, and I see a KO victory coming.”
The winner of the massive UK bout will be in line to challenge one of the main players in the cruiserweight division in 2015, with WBC titleholder Grigory Drozd, WBO king Marco Huck and IBF champion Yoan Pablo Hernandez all in the firing line.
In other news, the charismatic Bellew has been linked to a part in the upcoming Rocky spin-off Creed, a movie that has taken some time to get off the ground, but the Scouser was having none of it when addressing the rumors.
“All I will say is that it’s BS about Creed so far,” confirmed Bellew, who reports having suggested could line up alongside super-middleweight star Andre Ward in the film.
