Ellie Scotney: World champion draws on 'grittiness' from childhood for unification bout

Ellie Scotney (right) beat Laura Soledad Griffa at Wembley Arena last September to defend her IBF belt

Ellie Scotney says she is ready for "without a doubt" the biggest fight of her career - and to give her mum a birthday present at the same time.

The 26-year-old from London faces Segolene Lefebvre on Saturday night in their world super-bantamweight title unification bout.

Scotney will be cheered on by her large family at Manchester Arena - and using the tough lessons her childhood taught her to push for the biggest win of her life.

"I am the youngest one of seven, and my mum brought us all up off our own back," Scotney told BBC Sport on Thursday, following the pre-fight news conference.

"It has always been engrained in me to work a bit harder, whether to eat a bit more or just to get by. That grittiness has been installed in me since I was young.

"My mum went without so we could have everything, so giving back is first and foremost in my mind.

"Two of my brothers are up with me, one of them is my Uber driver - I hope he doesn't invoice me. It's also my mum's birthday today, and on Saturday the full army will be there."

Would a win on Saturday be the best birthday present possible for her mother?

"She will still want a real present…" Scotney said.

The news conference largely passed without incident for Scotney and Lefebvre, although it ended in a lengthy face-off.

The women, each holding their respective world title belts, stared one another down for nearly two minutes before Lefebvre turned away.

'This is my biggest stage'

IBF title holder Scotney faces her French opponent as the co-main bout at Manchester Arena, alongside Zelfa Barrett versus Joshua Gill, with Lefebvre's WBO belt also on the line.

Scotney has won all eight of her professional bouts but is up against an opponent who has been victorious in each of her 18 fights - and knows she will have to bring her best.

"Without a doubt," Scotney said, when asked if this is her biggest fight yet. "I've had the mindset from my debut that every fight is massive, but this is my biggest stage.

"There has been a shift in mindset, that has played out in the gym. There have been days where I have found another lease of life, I've needed to, I feel like I've grown into myself.

"I feel like me and Shane [McGuigan], I've been working with him for three years and the penny has dropped, we have really clicked and I've come up a level in every department."

If things get tough on Saturday night, Scotney is used to digging in and going the distance. She has not yet won a professional bout by knockout, while her world title winning fight against Cherneka Johnson and the first defence against Laura Soledad Griffa both went the distance.

Scotney says she is ready to go the full 10 rounds again but insists she has the punching power in reserve to knock Lefebvre out if needed.

"I've been in the ring when I probably shouldn't have been," Scotney said. "I have been to that dark place, I took hard fights.

"She has had 18 fights, I have had eight - but take quantity versus quality, there is nothing different."

Lefebvre, meanwhile, said she would not be intimidated by the partisan atmosphere when it comes to fighting a British boxer in England.

"The UK is a big boxing country, but I am delighted to be here to unify the belts," she told the press conference via a translator.

"I am not here to surrender my belt but to bring them both back to France.

"The win is the win, if by KO so much the better. I am here to show what a French fighter can really do."