There will be more than one person looking to prove a point when Gary Lockett steps into the ring to challenge Kelly Pavlik for the world middleweight title tonight. Lockett will want to show that he is not the no-hoper that he has been portrayed as, while the man in his corner will want to take a swipe at his doubters.

“America will be shocked,” Enzo Calzaghe said. “I have a guy who can fight, I've got a guy who has heart and I've got a guy who has a dream. Gary's got to rip the title from him.”

Calzaghe has seen his reputation as a trainer take a dent. He started the year with three world champions and a host of awards, including the American Boxing Writers' trainer. But in March, Enzo Maccarinelli lost his WBO cruiserweight title to David Haye, and three weeks later, Gavin Rees lost the WBA light-welterweight title to Andreas Kotelnik, leaving him with one world champion, his son, Joe.

It reopened the debate about whether Calzaghe was a master trainer or if was he just blessed with a brilliant son. If Lockett can pull off the upset and win the WBC and WBO titles at the Boardwalk Hall here tonight, no one will doubt him. “My boxers were told to do one thing, they f***ed up by doing something completely different,” Calzaghe said. “People have been slagging me off from Day One, when they said Joe should leave me. I had [a run of] 29 unbeaten world title fights. Two losses after 29 wins - ‘Oh the guy can't train.' It's pure envy.”

If Lockett had any doubts that his moment had arrived, they were removed when he saw his face on a giant billboard. “The bigger fighters may be used to things like that, but I'm not,” Lockett said. “I'm in a suite here. Me, from The Crescent in Cwmbran to a suite at Caesars - unbelievable.” But the 31-year-old has a huge task. The hard-hitting Pavlik won the title last year with a thrilling knockout of Jermain Taylor, the man who ended Bernard Hopkins's ten-year reign.

“Pavlik has probably a lot more weaknesses than the top five because of his whirlwind style,” Lockett said. “The more punches you throw, the more opportunities there are to get hit. If I can catch him clean, there's a good chance I'm going to win.”

Kevin Mitchell, the British super-featherweight champion who has won all his 26 bouts, makes his debut in the United States on tonight's undercard against Walter Estrada, of Colombia. Estrada has won eight of his ten bouts since being stopped in five rounds by Scott Harrison for the WBO featherweight title in 2004.

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