Sam Sexton says the pressure is all on home town favourite Hughie Fury when the pair battle it out for British bragging rights.

The Norwich boxer is making the first defence of his domestic heavyweight belt and says taking on Fury in his own Bolton back yard holds no fears.

The 33-year-old famously went to Belfast to face Martin Rogan for the Commonwealth belt in 2009, silencing the hostile Odyssey Arena crowd and then, six months later, went back and did it all over again.

And just five months ago Sexton headed to Edinburgh to face Scotland's Gary Cornish for the vacant British belt – and again proved that away days hold no fear for him.

'I have never been one to talk up a fight or bad mouth anyone,' said Sexton. 'I am comfortable in what I think I can do and when it comes to going away to fight I think I prefer it.

'I prefer it to fighting in front of my own crowd in a way because there is no pressure – all the pressure is on him to perform.

'He is coming off a loss to Joseph Parker for a world title – there is no pressure for me.

'I don't feel the pressure people perhaps think I do. I am fighting Hughie Fury, not his crowd.

'You get in the zone, you know what they are saying, but it is the old saying, sticks and stones – I don't care. It really doesn't bother me one little bit.

'It is going to happen and it is just ammunition for me – it makes the winning even better.'

Belfast was perhaps the best example of Sexton's mental fortitude.

'There are two men in the ring and usually one loser – and 90pc of those in the crowd sometimes don't know the first thing about boxing.

'It just all puts pressure on their fighter to do well – they have to do something about it and that's where they mess up.'

Fury is favourite to take Sexton's crown on May 12, but Sexton has other ideas.

'I am very confident,' he said. 'I know a lot of people say that and don't mean it, but whenever I go into a fight I am confident I can win the fight. If I didn't think I could win it I wouldn't go into the fight.

'I do the hard training, we work hard in the gym, I do everything I can,

'I leave nothing in the gym so I feel good and I am going to do it.'