Darren McDermott v Frankie Gavin

West Midlands boxing stars Frankie Gavin and Darren McDermott have spent the week fighting each other to get themselves in optimum shape for their title bouts.

Birmingham light welterweight Gavin, England's only World amateur champion, has been training at McDermott's home gym in Woodsetton, Dudley.

It's a series of tests lined up for 'Macca' as he prepares to take on Paul Smith for the British super middleweight title, in the champion's hometown of Liverpool at the Echo Arena on October 23.

Next up is a trip to Wales next week to spar with European and British light heavyweight champion Nathan Cleverly to get him used to fighting bigger guys ahead of his first bout at super middle, after a career mostly spent at middleweight.

And 'the Black Country Bodysnatcher' is already feeling the benefits of some top-class training partners.

He said: "It's top quality sparring like I have never had before, it's always been good but not like I have had this time.

"It needs to be to ensure that I am too strong for Smith and will be 100 per cent fit.

"I am sure he's expecting to go in there and bowl me over - he's in for a shock."

There's four weight classes between Gavin and McDermott but 'Funtime' Frankie turned down the chance of sunnier climes to spend the week in the Black Country, snubbing a training camp in Tenerife because of his fear of flying.

The 24-year-old will return to his trainer Anthony Farnell's gym in Manchester next week, but has enjoyed being closer to home.

He said: "We have doing some soft, touch sparring but nothing too hard, as he's a fair bit bigger than me!

"It's a nice place to train, certainly big enough and it has made sense for me to come here this week."

Gavin is actually in action before McDermott, with his first title fight for the vacant Irish crown against Michael Kelly set for Birmingham's LG Arena on September 18.

He qualifies to challenge for the belt through his parents, who was born in County Tipperary.

It's the third opponent he has been paired with, after former Birmingham City footballer and International Masters title holder Curtis Woodhouse pulled out with a hand injury, while Wolverhampton's Midlands champion Dean Harrison failed to agree personal terms.

Gavin said: "Dean was offered the biggest pay day he has ever had to take the fight, a win would have put him right back up there and, if it was me, it was a risk well worth taking.

"I don't rate Woodhouse at all, Harrison is a better fighter, but I still want to fight Woodhouse as I reckon I could beat him, even on a bad day!"

It's has also been decreed that another fight on the LG bill, Olympic gold medallist James DeGale defending the WBA International belt against Carl Dilks, will double up as an eliminator for the British title.

That could potentially set up DeGale and McDermott, provided they both win and dependent on the result of the final eliminator between Kenny Anderson and Tony Quigley.

But the prospect of taking on DeGale is certainly not something McDermott is sweating.

He said: "I am not going to look past this fight, all I would say I wouldn't be worried about fighting James DeGale. He hasn't had a proper test yet and until he has you don't know.

"When you go into a fight knowing you are going to bowl the guy over, you pick up a lot of bad habits. Then they are stepped up and all of a sudden it's 'bang' and they think 'bloody hell, what has happened here.'

"He hasn't boxed at the class I have, so we will have to see what happens when he starts doing 10 and 12 rounds."