Matt Skelton: Tom Dallas is a decent fighter but I can beat him

Former British, European and Commonwealth heavyweight champion Matt Skelton is determined to beat Tom Dallas in their upcoming fight and begin competing among Britain's top heavyweights.

Skelton hasn't fought since a split decision-points defeat to Michael Sprott in October 2010's Prizefighter but believes he still has plenty to offer and, though he acknowledges the threat posed by Dallas, is confident of victory.

"I've had an up-and-down year regarding my personal life," said Skelton. "My last outing was in Prizefighter when I lost the final against [Michael] Sprott.

"[But] I still enjoy the sport. In terms of getting in the ring, I am old, but I didn't start 'till I was old; I didn't start 'till a lot of people were hanging up their gloves, anyway.

"Although I've been pro since 2002, I've had about two years of that out [of the ring]. What I've achieved in that short amount of time is good for me; I still feel capable of competing with the guys at this level so I'm just going to enjoy it.

"I always look at people and where I was, and I was really hungry – you come to fight. Dallas obviously wants to prove himself. He lost to [David] Price – who's looked at as a big thing – but that's no disgrace on his part; it's common knowledge he took the fight at short notice.

"But I believe he's beatable, and I believe I've got the beating of him. I was offered to fight Ali Adams but I'd already beaten him in Prizefighter so I didn't think I'd get any credibility back if I did beat him.

"Whereas, with Tom Dallas, he's obviously been mentioned and, like I said, he's only lost to Price, so hopefully a result here can kind of put me back in the mix, really, and that's what I'm aiming to do.

"I think he's a decent fighter. I'm going to be honest, when I was fighting regularly I was in my element, really. You have to take into account that I haven't been in the ring for over a year.

"He's been fighting, he's been out there, he's been active and he's also been sparring with the top guys – Price, mainly. No matter what you say, I realised when I was fighting regularly – we were bringing in good sparring partners, I was sparring on a regular basis, fighting regularly... No matter what you say, anything you do improves the more that you do it.

"I think it's a good fight for me to have at this stage of my career. Hopefully I can improve on that and get back in the mix and maybe look at something better."

Skelton also revealed that, having been British champion from 2004 to 2005, his main ambition in boxing is to win a Lonsdale belt outright.

"Do you know what would be nice for me? If I got back to British level and won a Lonsdale belt – that would be a life's achievement for me," he added.

"If I got back to that level, with my age, at this stage of my career... that is the aim. But this is the fight I need to get past, and see what's on the table after that."

Tickets for Matt Skelton versus Tom Dallas on March 3 can be purchased from www.frankmaloney.com

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