Friday sees me fly out to Canada to go to my training camp and it’s a country I’ve been to previously, having gone there to fight. That was in 2008 when I was matched against Larry Sharpe and beat him after all three judges gave me a unanimous decision after a 10 round bout.

Last Friday, James DeGale came over to my gym in Essex and we had 10 rounds sparring and then, on Monday, he came back again for another 10. They were a good couple of workouts and I think that both of us felt the benefit.

Some of the press that James gets isn’t always too good but personally, I’ve got a lot of respect for him as he got on well with my late brother Gary. They used to box together when Gary was alive and because of that, I suppose I’ve got a bit of a soft spot for him.

It was good to get into the ring with James because, like my forthcoming opponent Sergio Martinez, he is a southpaw. Sparring is the closest you can get to stepping in the ring to fight for real. You can do all the training on the pads, the punch bag, the speedball, skipping, weights and road work but sparring really sharpens you up. The clock is counting down to the fight with Martinez and although its still a few weeks away, I wish it was tomorrow! It can’t come soon enough for me.

The past few days have seen me rushed off my feet what with training, sparring and then having to go through the usual medical checks that have to be completed before a bout but thankfully, the doctor has cleared me and said I’m fit to fight.

I’m glad to hear that some of my supporters from England are travelling over and I’m especially pleased that Luke Chandler is going to make the journey across the pond. He’s the guy who sponsors me and Elite Scaffolding – you’ve seen the name on my shorts and gown – is his company. He’s been really good to me ever since I’ve known him and when I get into the ring, I’ll be trying my best to do him proud, as well as my family and all my supporters.

I’m also chuffed to bits that my life-long friend and fellow Chelsea supporter Lee Waite is going to be there as well. You might well have seen him when I’ve fought before as he has carried my belts into the ring for me a few times when I’ve defended them. Lee has been doing security work in Iraq for the past few months so we haven’t really seen that much of each other lately but we’ll make up for that once the fight is over!

I’ve also heard that there will be a few American Chelsea supporters at the fight to cheer me on which is great for me. I’m fighting Martinez on Saturday evening US Eastern Standard Time and Chelsea play at Bolton at 1.30 pm UK time so I expect I’ll end up watching the game with them in some bar or other after I’ve fought.

My trainer Tony Sims won’t be too happy about that as he’s a West Ham fan but, as I keep telling him, it’s about time he saw some decent football so I’ll make sure he’s watching the boys in Blue alongside myself, Lee and all the other Chelsea supporters who are there!

The next time you’ll hear from me will be when I write my blog from Canada and I’ll let you know how my training schedule is going so, until then, keep well.