‘I’m not Arturo Gatti, I’m quite boring to watch’: Dave Allen opens up on Hrgovic chances, his place in boxing

“I’m gonna have a right go at him”

Allen (25-8-2, 20 KO) is his usual honest, realistic self ahead of this fight, but gives no impression of giving anything but his best effort. He simply knows that beating Filip Hrgovic is a big task.

“Do I think I’m gonna beat Filip Hrgovic? I’m gonna have a right go at him. I’ve got the ability to make him look a bit daft, make him miss, make him work hard,” he said. “Can I get over the line? It’s gonna be a fucking big job. People keep saying, ‘Let your hands go.’ You fucking go let your hands go with him. You go and box Filip Hrgovic and let your hands go without getting fucking flattened.

I’m very, very good at what I do. … 70 years ago, I would be a journeyman. I’d be a world class journeyman, and that’s what I am now.

Dave Allen

“There’s a reason I’ve never been flattened, and it’s not because I’ve got a good chin, it’s not because I’m tough. I’ve got a decent chin, I’ve got about as good a chin as anyone else, but if you get hit on the chin, you go over. And people think I’m tough, I ain’t that tough. Fucking hell. I’m not tough at all. I don’t want to fight anybody, really, I want to go home and eat chocolate.”

Allen broke down his chances a bit more, saying that he believes the chance to win is there, but it will be hard work to make it happen.

“I’m very, very good at what I do. That’s being tricky, it’s being hard to hit properly,” he said. “70 years ago, I would be a journeyman. You know, one of them really good ones. I’d be a world class journeyman, and that’s what I am now. And that’s what I’m gonna do Saturday.

“I’m gonna pick and poke at him, I’m gonna push him back, make him work at a faster pace than normal, because I am fitter and lighter. If he fucking starts to breathe heavy after five or six and I hit him, I’ll win. If I don’t, I’ll probably lose on points.

“That is the score. I didn’t pick Filip Hrgovic, I didn’t shout and scream for it. I’m not telling him I’m going to out-box him, or I’m going to knock him out. I’m going to do what I always do. I don’t bullshit anybody. People love coming to watch me, I’m very grateful for it, but I’m not Arturo Gatti, am I? Fucking hell. I’m quite boring to watch, really. But when I hit them, they stay fucking hit. But the good ones are hard to hit.”

“People go, ‘Look at Dave Allen, he’s so negative, he don’t think he’s gonna win.’ It’s gonna be hard work. Of course it is. What am I gonna do? Sit here, like, ‘I’m gonna win!’ and look a fucking prick on Sunday when I get hammered? I’m gonna tell the truth.

“I didn’t ask for this fight, they’re paying me a fucking fortune, of course I’m having it. I boxed Luis Ortiz and took home nine grand. You think I’m not going to box Filip Hrgovic for a lot more? I don’t give a fuck. I’ll fucking have a go at him and do my thing. If I win, I win. If I don’t, who gives a fuck?”

“I will never be as good as I will be on Saturday”

Allen does say that he feels “amazing,” and that despite any chatter, he has no intention of retiring from boxing no matter what happens on Saturday, when he feels we’ll see the best version of him there’s ever been and likely ever will be.

“I’m not going to retire regardless,” he said. “Win, lose, or draw. But I will never be as good as I will be on Saturday. Whether I win, whether I get knocked out in the first round, this is the best I’ve been. I’ve been training really well.

“Am I good enough, do I have enough talent, do I have enough ability? Am I big enough, do I hit hard enough? I do not know.”