Wladimir Klitschko has said ahead of Saturday's world heavyweight showdown with Tyson Fury that he has noticed a change in attitude from the Englishman.
Undefeated Fury, 27, who is 12 years younger than Klitschko, is attempting to inflict a first defeat in 11 years on the Ukrainian and take the WBA, IBF, IBO and WBO heavyweight titles on Saturday in Dusseldorf.
When asked about Fury's lack of pre-fight antics, Klitschko told Sky Sports News: "It's a good sign. It shows he's focused and going to face a challenge even if he says I'm old, slow or whatever the comment was.
"Reality is little by little it's coming to him. It'll happen especially on Saturday when we face each other in the ring.
"It's good he's nervous. I'm nervous too. I'm nervous before every fight. I know what to expect but to be nervous is to be alert."
Although Fury did not produce anything like when he dressed up as Batman in September, Klitschko still described his opponent as "goofy".
"I can't judge how he feels," added the Ukrainian. "He seems very motivated. He's goofy as he always is.
"I'm expecting from every opponent to be better than they usually are because this is the chance of their life - to fight for all the titles with a big champion."
Klitschko's career record reads 64 wins from 67 fights with 53 knockouts. Fury has won all 24 of his bouts, with 18 victories coming by way of knockout.
Pascal Lemesre
