WBA super-middleweight champion Fedor Chudinov has been sparring with Sergey Khomitsky, the Ukrainian who inflicted Frank Buglioni's only professional defeat, in preparation for his title defence against the Briton on Saturday.

Khomitsky stopped the then-undefeated Buglioni in six rounds in April 2014 before his decision to join new trainers Steve and Paschal Collins.

He also previously defeated the highly-respected Jamie Moore in 2010 and another promising British fighter, Adam Etches, earlier this year, earning a reputation as a 'British slayer', and the champion's camp believe he could yet have a significant say in Saturday's fight at Wembley Arena.

"There's only one difference," said the 28-year-old Chudinov's promoter, Russian Wlad Hrunov, at a bad-tempered press conference in a central London hotel.

"His name is Sergey Khomitsky, he stayed with us in the training camp. He sparred with him."

Buglioni, 26, swiftly responded that "he's not the same style as me though, is he?", before co-trainer Paschal Collins said: "If you're going on the Sergey Khomitsky fight, if you're looking at that fight and thinking that (the Buglioni of 2014) is going to be in front of you, throw that right hand over the top and see what happens. Your fighter gets knocked out.

"Your fighter is going to get his a*** kicked. Fact. Throw the right hand, we beg you, we will pay you to throw the right hand, and see what happens."

Paschal's brother Steve, a former world champion at both middleweight and super-middleweight who interestingly almost fought Chudinov's trainer Roy Jones Jnr in the 1990s, added: "We've got sparring partners that can beat Chudinov, that Frank's handling in the gym.

"We are very, very positive. Very positive, and very sure."