STUART HALL accepts his boxing career is entering its latter stages, but the Darlington bantamweight is confident he will set up a final flourish when he takes on Paul Butler a week on Saturday.

Three years after they met in a World title fight in Newcastle, Hall and Butler will lock horns again in Liverpool’s Echo Arena in a WBA World Title Eliminator.

If Hall loses, his time at the highest level will almost certainly be at an end. If the 37-year-old wins though, avenging his 2014 defeat, he will set up an opportunity to become the North-East’s first two-time World champion via a meeting with the winner of November’s contest between reigning champion Jamie McDonnell and Liborio Solis.

The stakes could hardly be higher, and there is an additional personal edge to the showdown that is driving Hall on. There is no love lost between this month’s opponents, and Hall would regard it as a massive dent to his pride if he was to bow out at the hands of Butler.

“This isn’t where my career ends,” said Hall, who first claimed the IBF World title when he beat Vusi Malinga in a thrilling contest in Leeds in 2013. “People keep saying this is make or break for me, and it is. But I’m not going to be broken by someone with as little talent as Butler.

“When I bow out, it’ll be on my own terms, not because I’ve been beaten by someone like that. There’s unfinished business to attend to here, and I’ll be going in there to do a job on him.

“Then after that, I can think about trying to make history by becoming a two-time champion. That’s what’s driving me on – that, and the chance to shut Butler up once and for all.”

Butler robbed Hall of the IBF title three years ago, winning a messy fight that saw neither fighter land any really telling blows, but since then the Liverpudlian has spent most of his time at super-flyweight taking on a series of journeyman opponents.

Hall has fought in two subsequent World title fights – losing narrowly to the supremely-talented Randy Caballero in Monaco before finishing on the wrong end of the verdict against Lee Haskins despite most neutrals having him down as the winner – as well as beating the dangerous Mexican, Rodrigo Guerrero.

He has been in the ring with a completely different calibre of opponent to the fighters Butler has been putting away, and feels the experience he has gained will be crucial in nine days’ time.

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“In boxing terms, I was a boy when I took on Butler the first time around,” he said. “I’d only just got my World title, there were a load of things going on, and I probably wasn’t ready for the fight.

“This time around, things are totally different. Since he won that title, Butler has spent his time fighting bums. The last hard fight he had was the one against me.

“I’ve taken on Randy Caballero when he was the best fighter in the world at my weight, and gone the distance against Haskins in a fight I still think I should have won. He’s not experienced anything like those two fights.

“I’m a completely different proposition now. I’m battle-hardened, and I’m hungry. He might think he knows about me because of what happened last time, but he doesn’t have a clue about how much I’ve improved. When I throw those first few punches, he won’t know what’s hit him.”

Hall has done some of his training in his native Darlington, but the majority of his work has been conducted in Birmingham under the watchful eye of his ring-man Max McCracken.

His Birmingham base has enabled him to spar with Gamal and Khalid Yafai, with the former holding the WBC International Super Bantamweight title and the latter having won the WBA World Super Flyweight title when he beat Suguru Muranaka in May.

He could hardly have wished for more seasoned sparring partners, and is confident this week’s final sessions will have put him in perfect shape for next weekend’s showdown.

“It’s been brilliant,” he said. “I’ve been doing a lot of work with the Yafais and they’ve helped me really get into shape.

“Listen, both the Yafais would stop Butler, no question. I’ve been going toe-to-toe with them round after round, so if they can do it, I can too.

“They’ve both said to me, ‘We’ve never seen you in better shape leading up to a fight’. Everything’s been slicker and more professional this time around. We know exactly what the plan is once the bell goes, and exactly what we’re going to do to win. It’s just a question of doing it on the night now.”

And while Hall might be venturing into Butler’s Merseyside backyard for a fight that will be screened live on Sky Sports, he is relishing the opportunity to silence thousands of Scouse voices.

“I couldn’t care less what they do,” he said. “In fact, I hope they’re all booing and shouting at me because it’ll drive me on.

“I’m old enough and experienced enough not to let that bother me. For Butler to have a chance, he’s going to need all his fans in the ring fighting with him, and that’s not going to happen. If they think they’re turning up to watch their man win, they’re going to be disappointed.”