The history of the ring is littered with the prone bodies of gifted men who took their titles for granted. Now, it is true that Ruiz is by no means as naturally talented as Holyfield or even Douglas. Nor is there serious evidence that Haye remains anything less than dedicated, however much he has been enjoying himself and his new-found status during the past few weeks.

Even so, a timely warning can do no harm. And in this case it comes from one of the most deeply respected men in boxing.

Emmanuel Steward is the trainer of countless world champions. They include the Klitschko brothers, Vitali and Wladimir, the rival world champions with whom Haye is plotting major unification bouts later this year. Steward is concerned that if Haye is anything less than fully focussed, Ruiz might knock those huge pay nights into the ether.

Ruiz's nickname, the Quiet Man, explains of itself why he is not the glamorous kind of box office attraction Haye would have chosen for this event, were he not the mandatory challenger. Steward, however, urges the English camp to remember that Ruiz - a Puerto Rican native now boxing out of Las Vegas - is the only Hispanic boxer ever to win any version of the world title.

Honest John might be another moniker for Ruiz, whom Steward describes as 'having fought at a consistently higher level than Haye for many years, sharing a ring with some of the best heavyweights in the business'. One highlight for Ruiz was a world title victory over an admittedly declining Holyfield.

Of Haye's hit and run tactics against the giant Valuev, Steward says: 'John knows his way around. He is not as fast as Haye but he is much more professional at cutting down the ring than Valuev. I give him an outside shot at winning this fight, so David had better be ready and on his toes.'