THE scope of Nick Blackwell’s latest British middleweight title defence may have shifted in terms of size but the magnitude of the challenge remains the same, according to trainer Gary Lockett.

Trowbridge’s reigning British title-holder was gearing up to make the second successive defence of his coveted belt against the unbeaten Elliott Matthews (15-0-1) but, with the Watford man pulling out of Saturday’s showdown with a cut sustained in sparring, Blackpool’s rangy former Prizefighter competitor Jack Arnfield (19-1) has stepped into the breach.

Despite a change of opponent coming just eight days before fight night at Bristol’s City Academy, Blackwell’s Cardiff-based trainer Lockett insists that he and his fighter have steadfastly stuck to the mantra of keeping their own house in order.

“We’ve gone from preparing for a 5ft 10in southpaw to a 6ft 2in orthodox fighter, so it’s quite a big contrast in that respect,” Lockett told the Wiltshire Times.

“But the way I’ve always trained is to not concentrate too much on the opponent. If you do that, you can lose sight of what you’re trying to do yourself.

“Nick will still be the favourite and rightly so – he’s used to being the underdog and that’s changing now.

“Fair play to Jack Arnfield for taking the fight. Sometimes you have to take these opportunities because the fights may not come again, just like my lad Dale Evans (who challenged Sam Eggington for the British welterweight title) a few weeks ago.

“He had an eight-round fight in October and I believe he was straight back in the gym after that but Nick gets stronger as fights go on, which is what he’s become renowned for.

“If Jack gets past six or seven rounds, he’ll be down on points and then he’ll have to cope with Nick coming forward more and more.”

Meanwhile, Lockett delivered a withering assessment of Tom Doran’s boast that he wants to snatch the Lonsdale belt away from Blackwell next year.

On Saturday, the unbeaten Matchroom fighter (16-0) stopped Rod Smith in Liverpool but Doran weighed in just below the super-middleweight limit at 167¼ lbs, rendering the contest’s status as a British title eliminator invalid.

“First of all, Tom Doran needs to go past six rounds, he needs to fight somebody with a pulse and he needs to make the weight,” said Lockett.

“If he’s weighing in like that, how much has he come down from? He’s not a middleweight.

“He won a Prizefighter tournament and I’m sure he’s a nice boxer but if the board order a mandatory defence for Nick next year, it won’t be Tom Doran.”

l Follow all the news and reaction from tonight's fight with sports reporter Dan Barnes from Bristol at wiltshiretimes.co.uk/sport and on Twitter @WTSport