Wayne Alexander hopes to finally realise his potential when he fights Takaloo in tonight's world title showdown.

The pair go head-to-head at York Hall, Bethnal Green, for the WBU light-middleweight crown.

It will be Alexander's second world title fight in a career that has promised much more than it has delivered.

The Hailsham-based fighter remains one of the most explosive talents in British boxing but his career has been a frustrating one with injuries and politics preventing him reaching a level of recognition which many believe he is capable of.

He is one of the biggest punchers in the game but with a suspect chin to go with it. Alexander's fights are always exciting but the problem has always been getting him in the ring.

A career record of just 22 fights in nine years as a professional speaks for itself.

In February, 2001, he challenged Namibian Harry Simon for the WBO world title and, despite taking the fight at 24 hours' notice, Alexander gave a great account of himself before being stopped in the fifth round.

The manner of his performance should have opened doors for the 31-year-old but there have been just six fights since then, including a second career defeat against Delroy Mellis in Cardiff last December.

When he returned to the ring in February, Alexander won in two rounds against journeyman Howard Clarke but only after being put down in the first round.

A showdown with Takaloo has been touted for the last two years and it now goes ahead after repeated postponements.

The fact that Takaloo boasts similar credentials to Alexander should make the fight short and explosive - and possibly one of the best of the year.

The outcome is difficult to call but Alexander has no doubts he will win.

He said: "I'm still the best in Europe and I'm willing to fight anybody anywhere.

"I've had a stop-start career to date and now I am more determined than ever to win and defend some major titles.

"I will finally prove my worth when I knock out Takaloo.

"I will stop him and then go on to bigger and better things."

Margate-based Takaloo first won the WBU crown when he stopped Anthony Farnell in Manchester three years ago.

A year later he lost on points to new champion Daniel Santos in Cardiff but regained the crown when he stopped Jim Rock at the Odyssey Arena, Belfast, in February 2003.

He made a successful defence against Jose Joaquin Rosa Gomez, of the Dominican Republic, at York Hall three months later but, under WBU rules, was stripped of the title after losing on points to Portugal's Eugenio Montero in a non-title fight at Wembley in January.

The fact that Montero went on to fail a drugs test following his fight with Anthony Farrell in June has left Takaloo hungry to reclaim the crown.

Alexander has his own desire to have a belt wrapped around his waist. He gave up both the British and European light-middleweight titles in an ill-advised step up to the middleweight division more than a year ago.

He said: "This means a lot to me. I have won the British and European titles and a world title is the only one I haven't got. My training has been going brilliantly. I have been training really hard.

"This fight has been a long time coming but it is better late than never. I am confident I will beat Takaloo."

Tonight's contest is a fight British boxing needs as much as Alexander himself.

The cynics have been armed with plenty of ammunition recently with a succession of possible contests falling by the wayside, including Ricky Hatton's challenge to Vivien Harris and Matt Skelton's projected British title defence against Audley Harrison.

There could hardly be a better time for British boxing to stop shooting itself in the foot and begin cashing in on the publicity generated by Danny Williams' win over Mike Tyson.