Pre-fight bravado and smack talk are rarely bigger than when it comes to boxing's big men.
From Muhammad Ali's taunting rhymes to Mike Tyson's droll observation about everyone having a plan until they get punched in the mouth, the maximum danger of big-time heavyweight action usually goes hand in hand with maximum bravado.
Dave Allen is not a normal heavyweight - something underlined by his startlingly unvarnished take on Saturday's showdown with Russian knockout specialist Arslanbek Makhmudov.
"I'm s---- myself, to be honest. Really s--- myself," Allen (24-7-2, 19 KOs) told reporters this fight week. "This fella's really dangerous. I've trained really hard and this will be the first time where, if I get beat, I'm maybe not as good as I hoped I was.
"I'm dreading Saturday. I can't say I'm going into it with loads of confidence because I'm a realist."
Now 33 and enjoying a late-career resurgence, Allen is an idiosyncratic survivor on the British boxing scene, an authentic folk hero who will be roared on by a partisan 10,000-strong crowd at the Utilita Arena.
Initially known as a tough, durable sparring partner – an old-school have-gloves-will-travel presence in the gyms of champions — Allen's first two losses came in the company of Dillian Whyte and Luis Ortiz. Those fearless showings against world-level operators, along with an infectious everyman personality, made promoter Eddie Hearn keen to give the 'Doncaster De La Hoya' opportunities.
He fluffed his lines, dropping a torpid split-decision to Lenroy Thomas when contesting the vacant Commonwealth title on the Kell Brook vs. Errol Spence undercard in May 2017. An away-from-home loss to Olympic gold medalist Tony Yoka followed before a showreel stoppage of Nick Webb kick-started a memorable run.
The culmination, and Allen's career highlight so far, was a third-round knockout of Lucas Browne at the top of an O2 Arena bill in April 2019. With his star on the rise and a showdown with Alexander Povetkin in the pipeline, Allen was concussively outboxed by former British champion David Price, pulled out after 10 gruelling rounds at the same London venue three months later.

Mark Robinson/Matchroom Boxing
"I was 27, but I was like a 12-year-old boy. I had the brain of a 12-year-old. I couldn't really take in what it meant at the time. I went missing for five or six weeks before," Allen said.
So, what did "going missing" look like?
"I was on a mad one. I'd just bought a house. The mattress was all rolled up, I'd put my head on that and sleep on the floor. I slept on the floor for about two years because I couldn't put the beds up. Eventually, I got someone to come round and put the beds up.
"So, I was just chilling on the floor. I sat and watched tele. I had the fish and chip shop round the corner and I'd go there once a day and have my dinner. That was all I'd eat. It was mad, really, looking back now. I can't believe it. I know I was an idiot. I'm still a bit thingy now, but I was a proper idiot then."
Now sleeping safely above ground and enjoying a new lease of life under trainer Jamie Moore, Allen comes into this fight after dominating his two-fight series against Johnny Fisher. Makhmudov (20-2, 19 KOs) has stopped 13 of his opponents inside the first round. But when the fight goes a little longer, things can get interesting.
Dave Allen vs. Arslanbek Makhmudov odds
Before presenting some of the odds for this one, here's Dave Allen again:
"I saw Makhmudov was even money. I couldn't believe it, me. Makhmudov should be about 10/1 on. It makes me feel popular because I know people are betting on me because they like me. I'm an odds guy, a maths guy. He should be 10s on, I should be 11/2 against."
- Dave Allen to win: 1/1 Ladbrokes
- Arslanbek Makhmudov to win: 10/11 Sky Bet
- Draw: 25/1 AK Bets
Dave Allen vs. Arslanbek Makhmudov prediction
Makhmudov's record looks imposing on paper, but his two defeats loom large, the manner of them feeling more relevant in the weekend analysis than the seven suffered by Allen across the course of his rollercoaster career.
The 36-year-old Russian was the A-side in his match-up on the inaugural Riyadh Season heavyweight card in December 2023. But Agit Kabayel exposed a stiff, upright fighter with poor balance, trading fluidly to beat Makhmudov to the punch before stopping him with a relentless barrage of the body in round four.
Two fights later, against former Italian Olympian Guido Vianello, Makhmudov was taken deep and stopped in eight. On the face of it, this bodes well for Allen.
Even in his defeats to the likes of Whyte, Ortiz, Yoka and Price, Allen has shown an excellent chin and the capacity to go into deep waters against big punchers. His best career win against Browne came courtesy of a perfect left hook to the body. A focused, mature version of this fighter is theoretically a big problem for Makhmudov.

(DAZN/Leigh Dawney)
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The intangible – remarkable in itself given we're talking about a 33-fight veteran – is what level the best version of Allen is at this stage of his career. His sparring chops count for plenty, but also contribute to miles on the clock. The win that got him here, that sensational stoppage of a raw and untested Fisher, is one you would also reasonably expect Makhmudov to achieve.
Kabayal is a legitimate top-five heavyweight, a few tiers above where Allen has ever been. Nor does not have Vianello's amateur pedigree. However, how many fighters has Makhmudov beaten who are definitely better than this version of Allen? A 41-year-old Carlos Takam, who took him the distance and won rounds? Maybe. But other than that…
"If Makhmudov doesn't punch as hard as I think, I think I'll outdo him as we go down the stretch," Allen said. "But if he does punch, we're in big trouble. We know that. I'm well up against it. I know how to beat him, but I could tell anyone how to beat anyone on paper. You have to go and do it."
Makhmudov's pedigree and punch power, along with the fact that he is the man with more to lose in terms of career prospects on Saturday, make him dangerous and hard to back against. Allen will have to use his sharp boxing brain and ring smarts to emerge from the first third of the contest intact. If Makhmudov is taken past halfway in this 12-rounder, get ready for a night British boxing fans will talk about for years to come.