Fabio Wardley recognises the “high risk” he is taking by entering Sunday’s fight with Frazer Clarke as a free agent.

Ahead of the biggest fight of his career, for the British and Commonwealth heavyweight titles at The O2 Arena in London, he isn’t aligned with a promoter.

That Clarke is committed to Boxxer, who are promoting Sunday’s bill, will already have contributed to some observers suggesting that Clarke is likely to be favoured by the judges, but more relevant and quantifiable is the fact that in the event of suffering his first defeat, Wardley could find himself in a vulnerable position.

The defending champion was previously promoted by Matchroom, and he will be more sought-after than ever if he defeats Clarke – at 32 three years his senior – but he has seen the success Dillian Whyte, so influential in his career, has had with similar freedom, and asked if he had thought about the jeopardy involved in Sunday’s fight, he responded: “Yeah, of course – 1,000 per cent. High risk; high reward. 

“Ultimately that’s the game I play entirely, even with boxing anyway, but I’ll always back myself; I’ll always bet on myself. That’s what I’ve been doing with my career to date and that’s what I’ll keep on doing.

“[I’m] free as a bird. I just want to make sure that I’m always in charge; always in control, and that nothing ever stops me from having those big fights. You’ve seen in my career; I’ve been chief support to ‘AJ’ [Anthony Joshua]; chief support to [Tyson] Fury, and now headlining my own show. I want to be part of those big occasions; those events and those big fights. I don’t want to be having fights for fights’ sake. I want to make sure I’m in full control of that.

“It’s a fight-by-fight basis and a fight-by-fight choice for me. I’ll assess as and when things go through and how I feel. Nothing’s ever completely off the table, I’ll always do whatever I feel is best for me, but right now, at this stage of my career, that’s what feels best.”

Boxxer’s Ben Shalom was asked about the same perceived risk, but said: “In this day and age, heavyweights are getting opportunities win or lose. He’s an exciting fighter. Whatever happens people are gonna wanna show his fights; Dillian Whyte did it his whole career. He’s got the same management, and they feel they know what they’re doing, and to be fair, so far it’s worked for them really well. 

“If you look at their ascendancy with Matchroom he got on a big card; now he’s here on Sky, headlining at The O2. With big risks [comes] big reward, and he’s getting big rewards for not being in a promotional contract now. He’s getting a big purse he probably wouldn’t be getting otherwise.

“He’s a marketable heavyweight with a great knockout ratio and he’s a good guy as well, so of course [we’d be interested in signing him], but, ultimately, those are conversations for after the fight. I’m just looking forward to Sunday and putting on a great night. 

“Our focus is Frazer Clarke. The reason we wanted to deliver this fight was for Frazer, and to do it in his ninth fight – to actually have him headlining at The O2, having debuted with us and sold this many tickets, it’s a huge night. 

“Frazer just needs to match Fabio for his work rate; his grit; his heart; his courage; his determination, and he should win the fight. What both guys do after, we’ll see, but it’s the most important fight in both of their careers, and possibly, after they retire, they’ll look back on it as the most important night of their career.”