Hopoate confident of producing an upset

The West Australian The bookies think otherwise, but John Hopoate is convinced he can produce the pressure to make the legendary granite chin of former heavyweight world champion Oliver

McCall crumble in Las Vegas tomorrow. Hopoate weighed in a couple of kilograms heavier than McCall for their scheduled 10-round bout at the Orleans Hotel and Casino. The bout for the vacant

IBA Intercontinental heavyweight title represents a massive step up for the 34-year-old former rugby league star who has notched 11 wins (all by KO) and two losses since turning to boxing

three years ago. American McCall, 44, is by far the best credentialed opponent Hopoate has fought. McCall, whose record stands at 51 wins (36 KOs) and nine losses, has fought several of the

best heavyweights of the last 20 years and held the WBC world title between September 1994 and February 1995. Major Australian betting institutions have McCall as the clear favourite, with

one reporting that it was "one-way traffic" with nobody wanting Hopoate despite his odds drifting. McCall has never been stopped in any of his losses, with his only inside the

distance defeat infamously coming when he broke down in tears in his rematch with Lennox Lewis, the man he took the title from. "I'm confident I will take him out," Hopoate

said of McCall. "The granite chin was years ago, he's getting on a bit. "His granite chin was in his heyday, but his in his 40s now." The Australian has suffered one

stoppage loss and has never been beyond the ninth round. "Everyone thought I couldn't go more than five against Bobby Mirovic and I got nine (rounds) in," Hopoate said.

"I've trained hard and I'm ready to go 10 rounds if I have too, but I don't think I will." Hopoate thought they keys to him winning was to keep his defence tight and

maintain constant pressure on his older opponent. "He's got a lethal right hand, I've got to try and avoid that," Hopoate said. "I've got to put pressure on

him and make him go backwards. "He doesn't like pressure. All of the fights he's lost the guys put pressure on him and that's what I will be doing from the word go."

Hopoate's manager and trainer David Millward didn't expect the fight to go the distance and believed his charge's constant pressure would prove too much for McCall. SYDNEY

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